Each year, the Austrian Physical Society (ÖPG) awards a prize for outstanding scientific work, alternating between the Ludwig Boltzmann Prize for theoretical physics and the Fritz Kohlrausch Prize for experimental physics. Many recipients are prominent figures in Austrian physics; Nobel laureate Ferenc Krausz is among them. The 2026 Fritz Kohlrausch Prize was awarded to Jan Balajka  for his advances in atomically resolved noncontact atomic force microscopy and the resolution of long-standing surface reconstruction problems.

Jan Balajka studied Physical Engineering and Nanotechnology at Brno University of Technology and came to TU Wien for his doctoral studies. He already drew considerable attention at that time by clarifying years of misinterpretations in research findings on titanium dioxide surfaces (Science vol. 361, p. 786, opens an external URL in a new window). After a postdoctoral research stay at Cornell University in the USA, he returned to TU Wien, where he focused on investigating insulator surfaces using high-resolution atomic force microscopy. Among other achievements, he played a key role in elucidating the structure of the most important aluminum oxide surface, which earned him a second paper in the prestigious journal Science (Science vol. 385, p 1241, opens an external URL in a new window). His research also includes high-resolution imaging of silver iodide surfaces, which is of great significance for ice nucleation in the atmosphere (Science Advances vol. 11, eaea2378, opens an external URL in a new window).

Congratulations on this well-deserved honor!