Angela Belcher Wins the $500,000 Lemelson-MIT Prize

Angela Belcher, the W.M. Keck Professor of Energy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has been selected as the winner of the Lemelson-MIT Prize. The prize, which comes with a cash award of $500,000, is given to an outstanding inventor dedicated to improving the world through technological invention.

In her laboratory, Professor Belcher uses organic and inorganic materials to create new electronic materials that are used in solar cells, medical diagnostic equipment, and batteries. One of her most recent inventions is a lithium-ion battery powered by engineered viruses.

Dr. Belcher has been on the faculty at MIT since 2002. She previously taught at the University of Texas. She holds a bachelor’s degree and a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of California at Santa Barbara.

Below is a video of Professor Belcher discussing some of her work.