Meet the ACS National Award winners for 2026: Part 2

Sponsor: Colgate-PalmoliveCitation: For innovation in colloidal synthesis of nanomaterials and colloidal self-assembly and for trailblazing research in molten salt colloidsCurrent position: Ernest DeWitt Burton Distinguished Service Professor, University of ChicagoEducation: MS, chemistry, Belarusian State University; Dr. rer. nat., chemistry, University of HamburgTalapin on his scientific heroes: “My scientific heroes are my graduate students and postdocs. Many have shown a dedication to science that I can only admire. As one advances in a career, it's easy to forget that the striking results in our talks and papers rest on hundreds of hours of careful, often tedious, effort by our team.”What Talapin's colleagues say: “Dmitri's research has significantly advanced colloidal chemistry, from synthetic methodology for novel quantum dots, to self-assembly and translational studies of additive manufacturing of optoelectronic devices. His methods are widely adopted by the research community and licensed by several companies to pursue commercial development of new materials pioneered by his group.”—Paul Alivisatos, University of ChicagoSponsor: ACS Division of Industrial and Engineering ChemistryCitation: For outstanding leadership contributions to the creation of equipment and processes for the large-scale industrial manufacturing of flexible organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displaysCurrent position: Senior vice president and chief technology officer, Applied MaterialsEducation: BSc, chemistry, Osmania University; MSc, chemistry, University of Hyderabad; PhD, chemistry, University of British ColumbiaWhat Nalamasu's colleagues say: “Working closely together with a leading display maker, Om's team demonstrated the process and equipment that enabled the introduction of high-resolution patterned OLED displays on the market.”—Stephen Forrest, University of MichiganSponsor: MilliporeSigma (a business of Merck KGaA,