Photonics Initiative Director Andrea Alù Receives Sixth Nomination for the Prestigious Blavatnik Award

Andrea Alù in the ASRC lobby
Andrea Alù, founding director of the Photonics Initiative at the Advance Science Research Center at The Graduate Center, CUNY and Einstein Professor of Physics at The Graduate Center

Andrea Alù, CUNY ASRC Photonics Initiative director and Einstein Professor of Physics at the Graduate Center, is a finalist for the 2021 Blavatnik National Award for Young Scientists in the Physical Sciences and Engineering category. He is among just 31 finalists selected from 298 nominations across the United States. Winners from the award’s three categories will be announced on July 20, each receiving $250,000 as a National Awards Laureate.

An engineer and physicist, Alù is challenging the limits of materials science. by tailoring the interactions of electromagnetic and acoustic waves with artificial materials. His work is demonstrating how cleverly designed nanostructured meta-materials can push the boundaries of physics. The discoveries are leading to new and enhanced material technologies with potential applications in cellular communications, energy harvesting, radar cloaking, optical computing, and nano-optics.

Read more about the awards on the Blavatnik Awards site.