CRANN Scientist Earns Nanoscience Award for Advancement in Scanning Probe Microscopy and Spectroscopy

Professor John Boland, who serves as Director at CRANN, a nanoscience institute funded by the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and located at Trinity College Dublin, has received the 2011 ACSIN Nanoscience Prize for his exceptional work in the advancement and application of scanning probe spectroscopy and microscopy and the application of these instruments in the analysis of physical and chemical phenomena of materials.

Professor Boland commented that he is grateful to receive the prestigious ACSIN Nanoscience Prize as recognition for his work and that of several partners and students with whom he has worked. He is also happy to represent Ireland and receive recognition for accomplishments in nanoscience as well as in other fields of science and technology, he said. Ireland now holds the 6th place internationally in the nanoscience field, he said. This pioneering research has gained the attention of both multinationals and local firms to partner with CRANN and the institute currently partners with over 80 firms, he added.

Professor Boland further said that nanoscience is now considered as a major technology that accelerates economical growth. Nanotechnology is used in several major markets of the Irish economy that include medical devices, pharmaceuticals, ICT and more and is projected to represent 10% of the country’s exports and linked to more than 120,000 jobs in the nation, he said.