Sebastian Bonilla, Hugh Price Fellow at Jesus College and Associate Professor of Materials at the University of Oxford has been honoured with a prestigious 2022 Philip Leverhulme Prize in Engineering.
Awarded by the Leverhulme Trust, Philip Leverhulme Prizes recognise the achievement of outstanding research scholars whose future career is exceptionally promising, and whose work has made original and significant contributions to knowledge as well as shown sustained international impact.
Associate Professor Sebastian Bonilla, Hugh Price Fellow at Jesus College.
Sebastian received his prize in the Engineering category. His research aims to understand and develop nanolayer materials, enabling a new generation of advanced optoelectronic devices and integrated circuits. This work include major contributions to the development of materials to improve the efficiency of solar panels, and thereby the uptake of solar energy as a solution to mitigate for climate change.
Of his Prize, Sebastian says, “I am deeply honoured to have been selected by the Leverhulme Trust for this great recognition of my work and their vote of confidence in me. I am thrilled at the new and exciting avenues of science that this prize will allow me to explore“.
“I am hugely thankful for all the support I have received from my colleagues at Oxford Materials, the funding from the Royal Academy of Engineering and EPSRC, and the work and dedication of my team, without whom this would not have been possible.”
Thirty academics have been recognised in this year’s Philip Leverhulme Prizes, with each receiving £100,000 for the advancement of their research. Philip Leverhulme Prizes have been awarded annually since 2001 in commemoration of the contribution to the work of the Trust made by Philip Leverhulme, the third Viscount Leverhulme and grandson of William Hesketh Lever (the founder of the Trust).
Sebastian is also a recipient of a five-year Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowship supporting his work into next generation electronic devices. He joined Jesus College in 2022 as a Hugh Price Fellow, which recognises mid-career researchers of clear academic distinction. This year he also became a Europe Fellow at the International Strategy Forum by Schmidt Futures; a philanthropic initiative aimed at creating an interdisciplinary network to strengthen progress and security amid technological innovation and a changing world order.