Professor Grätzel directs the Laboratory of Photonics and Interfaces at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne. He is renown for the discovery of solar cells based on dye-sensitized mesoscopic oxide particles. His group pioneered studies of nanocrystalline semiconductor junctions and their use in electroluminscent and electrochromic displays as well as lithium ion batteries and bioelectronic devices. As the author of over 800 journal articles, two books, and more than 50 patents, he is one of the world’s most highly cited scientists. His awards include the Harvey Prize, the Galvani Medal, the Faraday Medal, the Dutch Havinga Award, the ENI-Italgas Prize, the European Innovation Prize 2000, and the Gerischer Award. He was selected by the Scientific American as one of the world’s 50 top researchers. He has received honorary degrees from the Technical University Berlin as well as the Universities of Delft, Uppsala, and Turin. He is a member of the Swiss Chemical Society as well as of the European Academy of Science and was elected honorary member of the Société Vaudoise de Sciences Naturelles.