Professor Tobin Marks Unveils Advanced Soft Matter Solar Cells Applications

29 Aug 2025

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Professor Tobin Marks delivered a HKIAS distinguished lecture at CityUHK.

Professor Tobin Marks, our Senior Fellow, recently visited the Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS) from 15 to August 23 2025 and engaged in academic exchange at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK). On August 19, 2025, Professor Marks delivered a prestigious lecture as part of the HKIAS Distinguished Lecture Series. The lecture, titled “Application of Ductile Electronic Strategies to Soft Matter Solar Cells” focused on the design, creation and realization of new materials combinations for polymeric organic solar cells (OSCs).

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Professor Alex Jen chaired the lecture.
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Professor Marks enlightened the audience about the future of solar cell technology.

Professor Marks highlighted numerous advantages of OSCs, including their low-cost manufacturability, alignment with green chemical principles, and ductile qualities that enable flexible and stretchability. Professor Marks’ insights provided a promising outlook on how these strategies could pave the way for sustainable energy solutions.

 
 
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The CityU faculty members and students responded positively to the lecture.
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Professor Tobin Marks and Professor Alex Jen.

The lecture, facilitated by Professor Alex Jen, Lee Shau Kee Chair Professor of Materials Science at CityUHK, was supported in part by the Kwang Hua Educational Foundation. The HKIAS Distinguished Lecture Series served as a platform to continue fostering dialogue on cutting-edge scientific frontiers. For further details, visit here.

Professor Marks is widely recognized as one of the most influential scientists in chemistry and materials science, with aprolific career marked by 1,700 peer-reviewed publicationsand 218 U.S. patents. His international accolades include the U.S. National Medal of Science, the Spanish Asturias Prize, the MRS Von Hippel Award, the Dreyfus Chemical Sciences Prize, among others. He is a fellow of numerous prestigious academies and professional societies, including the U.S., German, Italian, European, and Indian Academies of Sciences, as well as the U.S. National Academy of Engineering. Beyond academia, Professor Marks has profoundly impacted the industry, founding or co-founding 15 start-ups whose technologies have generated approximately $120 billion in sales.