Prof Werner Blau, Fellow Emeritus in the School of Physics, winner of this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Professor Werner Blau joined Trinity in 1983 and from 1992-2007 he was Research Director of the Materials Ireland Polymer Research Centre, which worked closely with indigenous Irish plastic industries for all sectors, including electronics, medical devices and materials processing. He is regarded as one of the Irish pioneers of nanotechnology, has been cited over 23,000 times according to ResearchGate, and is a co-inventor on at least five patent families.
Since joining Trinity he has supervised over 100 PhD students including Professors Valeria Nicolosi and Jonathan Coleman, who have become key Trinity innovators and globally recognised research leaders. Werner’s work on the interaction of carbon nanotubes with polymers opened a new field within physics and led to patented technology that was subsequently licensed to US companies Unidym Inc. and Ensyse Inc.
In addition, the School’s researchers also received the following awards:
Ones to Watch
Prof Lewys Jones, Ussher Assistant Professor in the School of Physics. His team’s research focuses on improving the design and function of scanning transmission electron microsope (STEM), supporting the work of pre spin-out turboTEM.
Industry Engagement Award
Prof Stephen Dooley, Associate Professor in the School of Physics. Stephen takes an interdisciplinary approach to seeking new clean energy technologies and works closely with the likes of Ryanair, Total Energies and Siemens to ensure his research makes societal impact via the companies it can most impact.
The School would like to congratulate the winners and all of those nominated for the awards.