Thank you Tudor_Queen for your suggestions. I'll try to look for the possibilities but I'm afraid there aren't many ways I can do the same at my Institute.

Hello arabidopsisthaliana! For me, motivation has never been a major problem. I like the feeling of accomplishment that I get after solving a daunting problem or studying something which I originally considered tough. I hope that is the same for most of the people who embark on a research-oriented journey, including you. There are some occasional upsets here and there but all in all, for me, the pros outweigh the cons. Your lack of motivation can be accounted to the fact that in your case the cons outweigh the pros. I believe that if you will try to look past these obstacles, you will realize that you love to learn and challenge yourself as much as other highly successful PhD graduates around you. The fact that you have tried to keep yourself motivated by focusing on skill building and gaining knowledge is admirable. This is, in fact, a major motivating factor for me as well. I'd recommend watching Hamming's 'You and your research' talk on youtube to get a short burst of motivation to get you back on track.
Regarding your other question, the part I like the most about my PhD is the fact that the skill set and knowledge that I will gain once I complete my doctoral research will help me understand and appreciate a large number of related phenomena and will allow me to delve deeper into any of the allied areas of research in the future as per my choice. Speaking at a more holistic level, I chose to study optoelectronics because it lets me study the interaction of light and matter at the fundamental level which I personally find very rewarding.

Greetings Everyone!

I am in the first year of my PhD in optoelectronics and I am finding it difficult to stay motivated and study deeply for long hours. It's not that I lack the motivation, it's just that I am finding it difficult to convert that motivation into drive. Part of it has to do with the people surrounding me. For some reasons, the people surrounding me aren't as motivated towards research as you'd expect and I feel that it also catches on to me since I am seeing people around me slacking off most of the time. I was, therefore, looking for a good companion online, preferable someone who has also begun his journey recently or is about to, so that we can keep each other motivated and challenge ourselves.
I believe that connecting with strongly motivated individuals will help me put in much more effort than what I'd have normally put in if I were to work in solitariness.