Eminent Scientist and Bharat Ratna Prof C.N.R. Rao was awarded 2017 Von Hippel Award, the highest international prize in materials research. He is first Indian and first Asian to win this honour.The award will be presented to Prof Rao for his interdisciplinary contributions to development of novel functional materials,including nanomaterials, graphene, superconductivity, 2D materials and colossal magnetoresistance at Boston in November 2017,C.N.R. RaoChintamani Nagesa Ramachandra Rao is eminent scientist and world’s foremost solid state and materials chemists. He hasworked mainly in solid-state and structuralchemistry. He was first Indian scientist to reach the h-index of 100.He is also the Honorary President of Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advance Scientific Research, Bengaluru and a former Chair of the Japan-India Science Council. He has authored of around 1600 research papers. He also has authored andedited 45 books.He is also an elected member of almost allscientific academies across the globe and had served as Chair of the Scientific Advisory Council to Prime Ministers of India.He was awarded with India’s highest civilian award Bharat Ratna along with cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar in 2014. He has been bestowed with about 70 honorary doctorates and also has receivedthe highest civilian award from several nations.Von Hippel AwardVon Hippel Award has been instituted by Materials Research Society (MRS), an organisation with members spanning over 90 countries. It is named after Arthur von Hippel (1898-2003), a pioneer scientist known for study of dielectrics, semiconductors, ferromagnetics and ferroelectrics. He was an early advocate of interdisciplinary approach to materials research and his example substantially furthered science of materials.The award recognises those qualities most prized by materials scientists and engineers – brilliance and originality of intellect, combined with vision that transcends the boundaries of conventional scientific disciplines. The award includes a $10,000 cash prize, honorary membership in MRS, and a unique trophy — a mounted ruby laser crystal symbolizing the many-faceted nature of materials research.