The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic has been granting this award since 2009. The award is meant to make visible the contribution of scientific achievements of personalities of national and even international significance. The award also serves to strengthen the awareness of the greater public concerning the work and outstanding results of Czech scientists. Palacký University boasts three recipients of this award.
Scientific Director of the Centre of the Region Haná for Biotechnological and Agricultural Research Jaroslav Doležel was awarded for outstanding results in research of genetic information of plants. His team developed new methods that facilitate the analysis of complex genomes. Professor Doležel takes part in international projects researching the genetic information of important plant species, mainly wheat and banana. He is the founder and pioneer in chromosome genomics that allows the researchers to read and study the hereditary information of complex organisms in parts - chromosomes.
Physical chemist and director of the Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials was awarded for outstanding research of nanomaterials, development of the thinnest insulation product in the world - fluorographene, magnetic silver nanoparticles for targeted antimicrobial applications and effective photocatalysts for direct solar water splitting that may enable storing energy in the form of hydrogen.
Associate Professor of Faculty of Science was awarded the prize for outstanding research in the field of quantum physics, optics and optoelectronics, which led to the design and implementation of methods for suppressing noise in quantum communication and determination of optimal schemes for copying quantum information.