Michael Graetzel, Professor at the Ecolé Polytechnique de Lausanne, directs there the Laboratory of Photonics and Interfaces. He discovered a new type of solar cell based on dye sensitized mesoscopic oxide particles and pioneered the use of nanocrystalline materials in electroluminscent and electrochromic displays as well as lithium ion batteries and bioelectronic sensors. Author of over 500 publications, two books and inventor of more than 50 patents, his work has received over 40,000 citations so far, ranking amongst the most highly cited scientists worldwide. He has received several prestigious awards, including the 2006 World Technology Award in Materials, the Faraday Medal of the British Royal Society of Chemistry, the Dutch Havinga award, the Italgas prize and the Gerischer award. Last year he was selected by the Scientific American as one of the 50 top researchers in the world. He received a doctor's degree in Natural Science from the Technical University Berlin and honorary doctors degrees from 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.

Friedrich B. Prinz, Rodney H. Adams Professor in the School of Engineering at Stanford University, is Chair of Mechanical Engineering and Director of Rapid Prototyping Laboratory. Prinz's current work focuses on the design and fabrication of micro and nanoscale devices for energy and biology; examples include fuel cells and bioreactors. He is interested in mass transport phenomena across thin membranes such as oxide films and lipid bi-layers. His research group studies electro-chemical phenomena with the help of Atomic Force Microscopy, Impedance Spectroscopy, and Quantum Modeling. Prinz has received numerous awards and academic honors, including the AM Strickland Prize for Best Paper in 2005 for "Rapid Prototyping Methods of Silicon Carbide Micro Heat Exchangers." In addition, he has authored many publications and a complete list can be found at: http://me.stanford.edu/me_profile.php?sunetid=fprinz

Joop Schoonman is Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at Delft University of Technology. His research interests include: defect chemistry: relations between physical and chemical properties and defect structures of electroceramics; solid state electrochemistry; micro- and nano-ionics: batteries, fuel cells, solar cells, and sensors; chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor deposition, and aerosol techniques for thin films and submicron powders; nanostructured materials and sustainable hydrogen: production, storage, characterization and utilization. In 2005, he was awarded an appointment as a visiting professor at Stanford University. Among the many honors and awards he's received, include: Honorary Professorship Technical University Warsaw, Poland (2006); Honorary Doctorate, Ovidius Universtiy Constanta, Romania (2006) and Dutch Master in Materials (2006). He has authored and edited numerous publications. He was educated at Utrecht University, The Netherlands and received: Ph. D. in Chemistry (1971); M. Sc. In Solid State Chemistry (1967); B. Sc. in Chemistry (1964).