I'm an electrical and electronic engineer - and I made this website to show people some of the things I do!
You may find it strange to hear that I've been interested in this field for about as long as I can remember. I was a kid who played with light switches as soon as I could reach them, and I've been building circuits of some sort since about the age of 5! Later on, my interest in fixing things drove me to learn about complex modern electronics - before even going to University. I'm a big fan of right-to-repair, and I've been fixing things that aren't supposed to be fixed since about the age of 15.
To be fair, I was also an outdoors kid, and grew up in a rural area north of Auckland, which does explain a few things you'll see on this website.
I completed my BE(Hons) degree at the University of Auckland, New Zealand in 2021, and am now working towards a PhD, also at UoA. Formal education has given me a lot of skills which make it easier to design more complex and precise electronics - but I still often revert to a more intuitive way of working, driven by my early experiences, because it just makes things more enjoyable.
I do a lot of work in an area called power electronics. To explain what that is, think about the complexity of 'electronics' (computers, phones, TVs, home appliances - things that contain complex circuit boards), and then combine that with substantial amounts of power (think about the high-voltage electric power grid). The result is a technology which gives us the ability to control large amounts of power in precise and innovative ways. It has risen to prominence due to advances in high-power semiconductor science over the last few decades, and is what enables most of our society to function today. But crucially, electric vehicles and the future of the power grid depend on it - and as such, it has a massive impact on the fight against climate change. If you don't believe in climate change by now, then you don't believe in science - and I don't really have time for you. But if you're aware of how bad our society is for the planet, then just let me sell you this: power electronics is a massive part of the solution, because it allows us to harness renewable energy effectively and to replace pollution-emitting processes with clean, electric-powered ones.
Alongside my PhD research - which I will not bore you with - I do many independent projects in my spare time, and over the last couple of years they've gotten bigger and more epic. That's primarily what this website is about - from documenting in-depth electronics repairs I've done (because there's always someone on the internet who cares!), to converting a ride-on lawnmower to run on electricity, and making it go way, way too fast. Hopefully you find something here that is interesting, informative or inspiring - but for goodness sake, don't try anything you see here at home unless you know what you're doing!