Bernard L. Feringa

Facts

Bernard L. Feringa

© Nobel Media AB. Photo: A. Mahmoud

Bernard L. Feringa
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2016

Born: 18 May 1951, Barger-Compascuum, the Netherlands

Affiliation at the time of the award: University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands

Prize motivation: “for the design and synthesis of molecular machines”

Prize share: 1/3

Life

Bernard Feringa was born in Barger-Compascuum in the Netherlands, where his family had a farm. He studied at the University of Groningen, where he received his PhD in 1978. After a few years at the Shell oil company in the Netherlands and Great Britain he has been affiliated to the university of Groningen. Bernard Feringa is married with two daughters.

Work

We can imagine that the components of the smallest machines could be molecules. For a machine to function, its parts must be able to move relative to each other. Bernard Feringa has contributed to the development of molecular machines. For example, in 1999 he constructed a molecular motor by making a molecular rotor blade continuously spin in the same direction. In the future, molecular machines could be used for new materials, sensors, and energy storage systems.

To cite this section
MLA style: Bernard L. Feringa – Facts. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach AB 2024. Thu. 28 Nov 2024. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/2016/feringa/facts/>

Back to top Back To Top Takes users back to the top of the page

Nobel Prizes and laureates

Six prizes were awarded for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The 12 laureates' work and discoveries range from proteins' structures and machine learning to fighting for a world free of nuclear weapons.

See them all presented here.

Illustration

Explore prizes and laureates

Look for popular awards and laureates in different fields, and discover the history of the Nobel Prize.