David Lidzey studied for both his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in The School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Birmingham. After working for 2 years at Kodak Ltd. (Harrow) he returned to Birmingham University to study for a PhD (awarded in 1994). In 1995 he moved to the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Sheffield to undertake postdoctoral research. He was later awarded the Lloyds of London Tercentenary Research Fellowship in 1997 and an EPSRC Advanced Research Fellowship in 1999 to study the optical and electronic properties of organic nanostructures. He was promoted to a personal chair in 2007, and heads the Sheffield Electronic and Photonic Molecular Materials group (EPMM) in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. He has a strong interest in scanning near field optical microscopy and spectroscopy of organic thin films.

A continuing theme of his research has been the development of photonic structures and devices containing fluorescent organic materials. Here, he has made notable breakthroughs including the first observation of the strong-coupling regime in an organic microcavity. He has also worked on many aspects of the physics, technology and applications of polymer light emitting diodes and organic electronics. In 2007 he was awarded a Royal Society Mercer Feasibility Award, funded by ERAF.