HNEI Associate Researcher Nicolas Gaillard was honored at the 2026 UH Mānoa Awards Ceremony with the Regents’ Medal for Excellence in Research. This medal is awarded by UH’s Board of Regents to deserving faculty and recognizes research and scholarly contributions that expand the boundaries of knowledge and enrich the lives of students and the community.
Dr. Gaillard is recognized for his work in founding the Materials Science Consortium for Research and Education (MS-CoRE) in 2017, which brings together UH materials researchers to expand shared resources, strengthen interdisciplinary research, and foster collaboration. He brings over 20 years of experience in materials science, with an emphasis in the areas of photovoltaics, photoelectrochemical hydrogen production, and integrated circuits. has produced a suite of software tools for predicting battery lifespan at both the cell and pack levels. Dr. Gaillard leads the Thin Films Laboratory and his research focuses on understanding light-matter interactions at solid–solid and solid–liquid interfaces at the atomic scale, advancing the design of next-generation materials for renewable energy technologies.
With this recognition, the Board of Regents has given researchers at HNEI medal honors in back-to-back years, as Dr. Matthieu Dubarry received this medal in 2025.
More information on Dr. Gaillard’s research can be found at https://www.hnei.hawaii.edu/research/alternative-fuels/#solar and https://www.hnei.hawaii.edu/research/advanced-materials/.
› UH News announcement: https://www.hawaii.edu/news/2026/05/18/board-of-regents-research-2026/
› SOEST announcement: https://www.soest.hawaii.edu/soestwp/announce/news/2026-manoa-awards/
