Professor Radha Boya reaches final of Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists UK
The and the have announced the finalists of the 2026 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the United Kingdom. of the , at 黑料网吃瓜爆料 placed as a finalist in the Physical Sciences & Engineering category, receiving a fantastic prize of US$40,400. The Blavatnik Awards are the largest unrestricted cash prizes available exclusively to young scientists and engineers in the UK under the age of 42.
Professor Boya placed as a finalist due to her world-leading work in a sub-field of advanced materials called nanocapillaries. This field is focused on atomically thin channels (capillaries) in which water and gas behave in surprising ways, flowing faster and separating differently. Her discoveries offer new models for brain signalling and enable advances in brain-inspired computing and molecular filtration.
鈥淎t the 氓ngstr枚m scale confinement, where water, ions, and molecules behave in entirely new ways, we glimpse the hidden physics and chemistry to design selectivity rules for molecular and ion separation, and build ionic memory devices. I am hugely honoured and humbled to be a Blavatnik honouree. I am grateful to my mentors, collaborators and dedicate this recognition to my past and present research group members."
Now in their ninth year in the UK, the 2026 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists received 91 nominations from 46 academic and research institutions across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. A distinguished jury of leading senior scientists and engineers from throughout the UK selects the Laureates and finalists.
Despite their young age, Blavatnik scholars are driving global economic growth by pursuing high-risk, high-reward research. To date, Blavatnik Awards honourees have founded over 50 companies after receiving the award, six of which are publicly traded and collectively valued at over $10 billion.
Internationally recognised by the scientific community, the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists are instrumental in expanding engagement and recognition for young scientists and in providing the support and encouragement needed to drive scientific innovation for the next generation.
The Blavatnik Awards in the UK sit alongside their global counterparts, the and the in the United States, and the , all of which honour and support exceptional early-career scientists. By the close of 2026, the Blavatnik Awards will have awarded prizes totalling over $20 million to over 500 scientists and engineers worldwide.
鈥淭he Awards were created to honour outstanding, early-career scientists, accelerate their research, and ensure that discoveries with the potential to dramatically improve society are recognized, supported, and implemented,鈥� said , Founder of Access Industries and the Blavatnik Family Foundation.
Members of the public interested in learning more about this year鈥檚 honourees' research may register to attend a free public symposium titled 鈥淟eading with Discovery: UK Scientists Shaping Global Science鈥� at the Royal Society of Medicine on Wednesday, 25 February 2026, from 10:00 to 15:00 GMT. To attend this FREE public symposium, register .
To find out more about the awards, Laureates and finalists, please visit the