Two Manchester scientists are being recognised with the most prestigious of awards for their ‘outstanding’ work on the miracle material graphene.
University of Manchester’s Nobel Laureates Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov have been awarded two of the Royal Society’s most prestigious medals.
Graphene, is a highly conductive metal that is the world’s strongest but also thinnest material with the capacity to transform a variety of products, including smartphones, computer chips and drug delivery.
Sir Andre said: “I am absolutely delighted to receive this old and prestigious award. Not only I am humbled, I also feel younger.”
He was awarded the esteemed Copley Medal, the Society’s oldest medal that is given ‘for outstanding achievements in research in any branch of science’.
The medal, first awarded in 1731, has been received by other distinguished scientists such as Michael Faraday, Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin and Dorothy Hodgkin.
The President of the Royal Society, Sir Paul Nurse, said: “I’m delighted that the Copley Medal has been awarded to Andre Geim this year. His work on graphene could truly revolutionise many technologies. ”
The Leverhulme Medal was also received by Sir Kostya for his innovative work on graphene, two‐dimensional crystals and their heterostructures.
The gold medal is awarded for ‘an outstandingly significant contribution in the field of pure or applied chemistry or engineering, including chemical engineering’ and is accompanied with a gift of £2,000.
Sir Kostya said: “It has always been part of the excitement of the work on graphene – most fundamental experiments in the physics of this material often lead to the creation of new devices and applications.
“The developments of the recent few years show that such transition goes even smoother and faster than one could have envisaged.”
Both Professors are Fellows of the Royal Society and were awarded the Nobel Prize in 2010 for their cutting-edge experiments with graphene.
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