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Professor Xiaobo Yin from the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Hong Kong (HKU) has been awarded the Xplorer Prize 2022.

The Xplorer Prize is a non-governmental merit-based award and one of the most generous talent funding programmes for young scientists in China. A total of 50 outstanding scientists have been awarded this year. Professor Yin is among the three awardees in the Hong Kong and Macau area.

Professor Yin is currently a Global STEM Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Professor of Physics at HKU. His research focuses on nanostructured optical materials, radiative heat transfer, high-temperature materials, and scalable manufacturing. He authored and co-authored more than 100 journal publications and is one of the most highly cited researchers by Clarivate Analytics. His current research includes (i) understanding the fundamentals of energy-matter interaction at various spatial-temporal scales and/or under different extreme conditions, and (ii) developing scalable and sustainable manufacturing technologies to deploy innovative materials/structures for various applications in the climate-water-energy-food nexus.

"Our research results have made significant contributions to optical micro-nano structured materials. In the future, my future plan is to explore in the direction of its large-scale manufacturing and application in the fields of energy and environment," said Professor Yin.

HKU President and Vice-Chancellor Professor Xiang Zhang congratulated Professor Yin on his success and said: "I am delighted to see the Xplorer Prize encouraging young scholars to aim high and dare to be creative. In addition to the funding support, the award creates an important interdisciplinary exchange platform and an inspiring atmosphere for young scholars to collaborate and advance the boundaries of science.”

The Xplorer Prize was launched in 2018 jointly by Pony Ma, Chairman and CEO of Tencent and founder of Tencent Foundation, and 14 renowned scientists including Chen Ning Yang, Rao Yi, Shi Yigong, Pan Jianwei and Xie Xiaoliang. Fifty outstanding scientists will be selected each year and each winner will be awarded a total of RMB 3 million over the next five years by Tencent Foundation. Until 2022, the prize has funded 200 promising young scientists.

Please click here to visit the Xplorer Prize website for more information about the 2022 awardees.

Professor Xiaobo Yin’s Biography
Professor Xiaobo Yin is currently a Global STEM Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Professor of Physics at the University of Hong Kong. He received his BS degree from Nanjing University and his PhD degree from Stanford University in 2008. He is a fellow of OSA and SPIE. Prior to joining the University of Hong Kong, he was the Bruce S. Anderson Faculty Fellow of the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder. His research focuses on nanostructured optical materials, radiative heat transfer, high-temperature materials, and scalable manufacturing. He authored and co-authored more than 100 journal publications and is one of the most highly cited researchers by Clarivate Analytics. His works have been featured in numerous media outlets including Nature, Science, Physics Today, Scientific American, the Economists, and Forbes. He was a recipient of the 2017 Moore Inventor Fellowships, and the 2017 Kavli Foundation Early Career Lectureship of Materials Science. His recent work on passive radiative cooling was featured as one of the top 10 breakthroughs of the year 2017 by the Institute of Physics (IOP) Physics World and the top 10 most reviewed articles by The Economists.

Media enquiries
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Mr Kenneth Choi (Tel: 2859 2607 / Email: khkchoi@hku.hk)