WATCH: Graphene – made in Manchester

26 Jul 2016

Nobel Prizewinners Sir Andre and Sir Kostya give keynote speeches at ESOF

The EuroScience Open Forum (ESOF), Europe’s greatest scientific gathering, celebrating Manchester’s role as European City of Science 2016, has a graphene flavour today.

Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, who won the Nobel Prize for Physics after discovering the wonder material here at the University in 2004, are giving keynote speeches.

Sir Andre, Regius, Langworthy and Royal Society Research Professor, will discuss why true science is as creative as any art form with John Lloyd, BAFTA award winning television producer and writer.

He will explain where ideas come from, what drives him as a scientist and the secret to his success. Was there a moment when he realised he had discovered something that will radically transform the world? How does he design testable hypotheses? And what drives him on through the inevitable setbacks?

Sir Kostya, Honorary Professor of Physics and the Royal Society Research Fellow, is speaking at Graphene and beyond: a revolution in two dimensions.

He will present how 2D materials research could spark a revolution in real-world applications, while Professor Frank Koppens will discuss how the Graphene Flagship is ensuring that Europe can compete globally in making graphene products a reality.

Scientists and industry representatives will then debate the challenges of taking graphene and 2D materials to the market, and what sectors could be transformed by the ground-breaking research taking place all over the world.

To hear the inspiring story of graphene, watch: