Astrid Campos-Mata received her bachelor's degree in industrial chemistry from Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon, Mexico, in 2020. Currently, she is a PhD candidate in materials science and nanoengineering (MSNE) at Rice University and expects to graduate in fall 2025. Her research centers on electrochemical energy conversion, specifically electrocatalysis for water splitting and CO2 reduction, which are critical in the global effort to improve energy-efficient technologies. Her experiences have shaped her understanding of the barriers preventing energy technologies from reaching commercial scale and remote communities. She sees her work as both an opportunity to close these gaps and a platform for training the next generation of scientists and engineers. Going forward, she aims to engineer electrochemical interfaces for new energy technologies. At Rice, she has served as vice president of the MSNE Graduate Student Association, president of the Latin American Graduate Student Association, and as a graduate fellowship coach, she has helped peers apply for competitive research funding. Her involvement in Doerr Institute's Women in Leadership program deepened her commitment to inclusive leadership and led to her becoming a graduate student ambassador. Through Clubes de Ciencia in Mexico, she developed and led a one-week workshop in materials science for low-income and underrepresented high school and undergraduate students. The opportunity to serve is what excites Campos-Mata most about academia — not only through teaching and research, but also by building community and opening doors for others.

Research Interests

Electrocatalysis, Energy Conversion and Storage