Manchester academics recognised at 2021 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists

Three Manchester academics have been named among the Laureates and Finalists of the prestigious 2021 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists. Now in its fourth year, the award is the largest cash prize available to scientists aged 42 or younger. The recipients are recognised for their research, which is already transforming technology and our understanding of the world.

Announced on the 9th December by the Blavatnik Family Foundation and the New York Academy of Sciences, Professor Daniele Leonori of the Department of Chemistry is one of three Laureates from UK universities who will each receive $100,000 (£76,000) for their work across life sciences, physical sciences and engineering, and chemistry. Dr David Mills, also of the Department of Chemistry, and Professor Artem Mishchenko of the Department of Physics and Astronomy have been named among this year’s Finalists, and will both receive $30,000 (£23,000).

Dr Mills is recognised for making a critical discovery that has revitalised the field of single-molecule magnets, paving the way for their practical use. These single-molecule magnets have potential applications in high-density data storage and quantum computing.

Professor Mishchenko has been recognised for revealing unusual quantum phenomena in vertical, multilayer stacks of two-dimensional materials, in particular those that hold great potential in the development of novel electronic transistors for light-emitting diodes (LEDs), high-speed electronics, and information storage.

The Laureates and Finalists will be honoured, as pandemic restrictions allow, at a black-tie gala dinner and ceremony at Banqueting House in London, tentatively scheduled for 8 June 2021. The following day the honourees will present their research with a series of short, interactive lectures at a free public symposium entitled ‘Innovating for a Better Future: Nine Young Scientists Transforming our World’.