Department of Materials colleagues recognised in IOM3 Awards 2025

The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) recognised Dr Richard Chater, Dr James Douglas, Professor Molly Stevens and Discover Materials.

The Insitute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) presents a range of awards, medals and prizes every year to recognise personal achievement, for published work and for contributions to the Institute, knowledge, outreach and profession.

The IMO3 is one of the leading global professional membership bodies for those studying, working in, or interested in the science, engineering, and technology of materials and natural resources.

Awardees will receive their awards at the 2025 IOM3 Awards Day Christmas Dinner on Thursday 4 December at the Institute's London headquarters.

Technical Professional Awards

DR RICHARD CHATER, THE HENRY ROYCE INSTITUTE AWARD FOR INNOVATION BY A TECHNICAL PROFESSIONAL

Dr Richard Chater has received The Henry Royce Institute Award for Innovation by a Technical Professional.

The award recognises the crucial impact that technical professionals make in advancing our technology and understanding of the materials world.

Dr Chater joined the Department in 1974 and managed the SIMS Facility until part-retirement in 2012. Dr Chater was awarded a PhD (Imperial) in 2014, 'oxygen self-diffusion and exchange coefficient measurements of the polycrystalline oxide, (LaSr)(CoFe)O3 by Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry'.

Dr Chater now works on the Hi5 SIMS, which was funded in 2017 by UKRI and installed over an extended period from Oct 2018 to 2022. The Hi5 SIMS is located in LG62, the Surface Analysis Facility.

Hi5 SIMS is a unique advanced surface analysis instrument that offers several capabilities not available on standard UHV SIMS systems. It can simultaneously collect positive and negative ion chemical maps, cutting analysis time in half while improving accuracy for complex materials. Its custom-built ion source and column allows analysis using a range of gases (oxygen, nitrogen, helium and xenon) with ion beam spot sizes down to sub-100nm for high lateral resolution. 

Hi5 SIMS enables in-operando experiments like battery testing using steerable probes in a near field-free environment. Recent upgrades include simultaneous imaging of surface structure and absorbed charge, as well as high-resolution optical topography inside the vacuum chamber—both of which enhance analysis of air-sensitive materials.

DR JAMES DOUGLAS, THE HENRY ROYCE INSTITUTE AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION BY A TECHNICAL PROFESSIONAL

Dr James Douglas has recieved The Henry Royce Institute Award for Outstanding Contribution by a Technical Professional.

The award recognises the input of an exceptional and established technical professional over a sustained period of time.

Dr Douglas is a Research Facility Manager in the Department of Materials, specialising in Atom Probe Tomography (APT). His responsibilities include helping run the Imperial Centre for Cryo Microscopy of Materials (I(CM)2)with specific responsibility for the Cameca Local Electrode Atom Probe (LEAP) 5000X R. He also leads training students and staff on the instrument, atom probe data analysis and associated sample preparation and complementary microscopy.

His areas of expertise include Focused Ion Beam (FIB) sample preparation,scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and transmission Kikuchi diffraction (TKD). He is also involved in developing process flows for complementary transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and APT analysis of materials using cryo and vacuum transfer between instruments. 

The Chapman Medal

PROFESSOR DAME MOLLY STEVENS, THE CHAPMAN MEDAL

Professor Dame Molly Stevens DBE FREng FRS has been awarded 
the prestigious Chapman Medal.

The Chapman Medal recognises distinguished research in biomedical materials, particularly innovations in biomaterials that have significantly benefited patients and advanced opportunities within the industry.

Professor Dame Molly Stevens is the John Black Professor of Bionanoscience at the Department of Physiology, Anatomy & Genetics, Deputy Director of the Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery, and a member of both the Department of Engineering Science and the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Oxford. Professor Stevens also holds a joint position in the Department of Materials and Department of Bioengineering at Imperial College London.

Medal for Excellence

DISCOVER MATERIALS, MEDAL FOR EXCELLENCE

Discover Materials (DM) is a UK-wide working group that promotes Materials Science and Engineering (MSE). They have been awarded the Medal for Excellence for outstanding achievement by a group in materials, minerals or mining.

Discover Materials was formed at the Heads of Materials Science Departments meeting in 2017, where a group of early-career academics and outreach officers from nine universities were tasked with increasing application numbers to courses at UK universities. They formed the DM group in 2018 and, supported by the Henry Royce Institute, set up the National Outreach Officer post (2019) and University of Leeds joined (2020).

Since then, Discover Materials (DM), in partnership with the Henry Royce Institute, has driven national outreach through surveys, school visits, and public engagement to raise awareness of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE). Their 102-strong Ambassador network spans students and researchers who volunteer across the UK. Their content and events target students, parents, and teachers, supported by a dedicated website and professional video. Additionally, strategic work with UCAS has helped boost MSE applications by 35%.

They have now secured funding and partnerships from the UK Space Agency (for the 'Let’s Move to the Moon' project) and the Royal Society of Chemistry (to develop self-guided science kits for children), while also collaborating with partners such as 4wardFutures and The Salters’ Company, and offering teacher-focused CPD sessions. In 2021, DM established a multidisciplinary Advisory Board with members from academia, schools, community groups, the Ogden Trust, and IOM3 to ensure sustainable governance.

Dr Eleonora D'Elia, our Outreach Lead in the Department of Materials at Imperial College London, serves as a Discover Materials Co-chair.

Learn more about Discover Materials: https://discovermaterials.co.uk/

Learn more about the 2025 IOM3 prizes: https://www.iom3.org/events-awards/awards.html