Jeff Payne received a B.S. in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse in 1983. Jeff then attended Kansas State University, where he obtained a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry in 1988. In late 1987, he joined the electron microscopy group of the 3M Corporate Research Analytical Lab (CRAL), which provides analytical support to all of 3M鈥檚 business units and Corporate R&D areas. His current position is Advanced Research Specialist and he specializes in scanning electron microscopy.
Jeff has been very active in the 3M Visiting Wizard program since 1988, and has served as the chair of the program since 2004. He has presented science demonstrations in classrooms and public venues (libraries, museums, the Mall of America, MN Inventor鈥檚 Congress, the MN State Fair, USA Science & Engineering Festival), presenting to over 80,000 children and adults. He was awarded a 3M Corporate Volunteer Award in 2007, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the 3M Tech Forum in 2016, and was a Point of Light awardee in 2019, all for his work with the 3M Visiting Wizards.