Roger Wepf

Professor Roger Wepf is the Director of the Centre for Microscopy and Microanalysis (CMM) and leads the UQ node of Microscopy Australia. His career spans decades at the forefront of high-resolution imaging in electron microscopy, structural biology, and advanced analytical workflows of material science, with previous leadership roles at ETH Zurich and in the EMBL Heidelberg Physical Instrumentation R&D group. At UQ, he has driven the development of multimodal and correlative microscopy approaches, integrating light microscopy, electron microscopy, X-ray fluorescence microscopy, imaging mass spectrometry and advanced data management. Professor Wepf has been instrumental in developing cryo sample preparation tools and correlative workflows that are now used globally and marketed by well-known suppliers in the electron microscopy field. He also established with NewSpec/Hitachi the Inspire outreach program in QLD, delivering a desktop SEM to local schools to train the next generation of curious scientific minds. He has played a key role in building NRICH’s capabilities for large-scale mineral, biological, and materials characterisation, combining state-of-the-art instrumentation with innovative workflows and data integration pipelines that adhere to FAIR/FAIR-CARE principles.

Professor Wepf’s research bridges academic and industry needs, from localisation of biomolecules at the nanoscale to the characterisation of beam- and environment-sensitive materials critical for quantum technologies, catalysis, and battery development. His leadership has fostered partnerships with global instrumentation companies and industry collaborators to co-develop new imaging hardware, detectors, and workflows. He is a founding member of two scientific journals, most recently Methods in Microscopy with De Gruyter, a community-focused open access journal advancing method development and dissemination in the microscopy field. He has also initiated strategic programs such as the Pitschi data repository and multimodal segmentation projects, enabling the Australian research community to manage, share, and analyse large datasets at scale. Professor Wepf’s commitment to mentoring and training ensures that the next generation of scientists are skilled in applying advanced microscopy to solve problems in energy, health, minerals, and materials science. He also established with NewSpec/ Hitachi the Inpsire outreach program in QLD delivering a desktop SEM to local schools to train next generation of curious scientific minds