Aisha Bibi

Dr Aisha Bibi is a Photonics Integration Engineer at Salience Labs Ltd., a UK-based startup spun out of the University of Oxford and the University of Münster, focused on developing optical switches for AI infrastructure.

She completed her undergraduate degree in Information and Communication System Engineering at the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Pakistan, after which she worked in the telecom sector in Pakistan. In 2018, she was awarded the prestigious Erasmus Mundus scholarship for a joint master’s degree in Photonics Engineering at Aston University, UK, and Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Italy.

After completing her master’s degree, she joined Aston University as an Early-Stage Researcher in the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action (MSCA) scholarship for the ITN project MONPLAS, where she worked on developing photonic technologies to detect ultra-low concentrations of nanoplastics in water using surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Upon becoming an MSCA alumna, she continued at Aston University as a Research Associate, designing and developing a multi-wavelength Raman spectrometer for several years before transitioning into industry to join Salience Labs Ltd.

Dr Bibi’s outreach work dates back to her time at NUST, where she served as an active officer and member of several societies, including the Youth Entrepreneurial Society, The Indus Entrepreneurs Islamabad chapter, the Council of NUST Centre for Leadership, and NUST Volunteers Club. Through these platforms, she organised and participated in numerous outreach and volunteer activities aimed at promoting and raising awareness of STEM.

Her volunteering efforts advanced significantly during her time at Aston University, where she served as President of the Optica and SPIE Student Chapter for two consecutive years (2022–24). During this tenure, she organised a wide range of activities—including seminars, workshops, and skills-development events—benefiting both students and staff. As president, she also coordinated events celebrating internationally recognised occasions such as the International Day of Light, International Women’s Day, and International Students’ Day, using these opportunities to deliver seminars that supported the wider academic and student communities.

Beyond her student-chapter leadership, Dr Bibi planned and executed a satellite symposium at the ICCE 2023 conference, contributed to the European Researchers’ Night in 2022 and 2023, organised a photo competition and Photonics Fair for the International Day of Light 2023, and led panel discussions for International Women’s Day 2024. Additionally, she has been actively involved in international meetings and training schools under the COST Action ICPLASTIC (2024–28), for which she serves as the Science Communication Coordinator and Management Committee Member.

As a strong advocate for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI), Dr Bibi joined the People, Culture and Inclusion Committee at Aston University, contributing to policy development aimed at supporting underrepresented groups. To further ensure that student rights were upheld at both the Institute and College levels, she also took on the voluntary roles of AIPT PGR Representative and EPS Student Representative. In these positions, she represented the interests of the student body and played an integral role in shaping decisions and policies that support student well-being and advancement.