Past Winner
2014 NSERC E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowships

Dr. Federico Rosei

Energy, Materials and Telecommunications Centre

Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS), Université du Québec

Building new technologies, atom by atom

Dr. Federico Rosei is a master builder in the tiny world of molecular structures. This rising star in materials physics is designing and creating the nanoscale building blocks that will help develop new technologies for green energy, electronics and life sciences.

His team at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) showed how it is possible to control the size, shape, surface and architecture of nanoscale materials–crucial steps in tailoring their properties for a variety of applications in electronics, life sciences and green energy production. His recent work focuses on creating a new generation of integrated nanosystems with unique functions that break down the boundaries of traditional technologies.

For example, he established that multiferroic (i.e., simultaneously magnetic and ferroelectric) materials can be used for solar energy conversion, including water splitting–a technique that uses power from sunlight to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, creating a clean and renewable energy source.

After having earned his Ph.D. 13 years ago from the University of Rome La Sapienza, Dr. Rosei is now considered an internationally recognized expert in nanomaterials. In addition to a 2014 Steacie Memorial Fellowship, he has received several other prestigious awards: the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s 2010 Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award, the Rutherford Memorial Medal in Chemistry from the Royal Society of Canada, the Herzberg Medal from the Canadian Association of Physics and the Award for Excellence in Materials Chemistry from the Canadian Society for Chemistry.