On Thursday, March 14, in the Grand Hall of SANU, the Institute of Physics Belgrade organized the awarding of the prestigious “Marko Jarić” prize, which is awarded by the “Prof. Dr. Marko V. Jarić” Foundation.
The award, which is sometimes referred to as the “Serbian Nobel prize for Physics” in the media, was awarded this year by the Foundation to prof. Dr. Ilija Zeljković, Full Professor at Boston College in the United States of America.
The award was presented by Dr. Aleksandar Bogojević, Director of the Institute of Physics Belgrade, an institution that financially supports this significant award. “I want to thank the family, friends and colleagues of Dr. Marko Jarić who gave us a beautiful and valuable plant 26 years ago. The task of the Institute of Physics is to water it every year and not to consider the short-term benefits of such a plant, because this is about long-term benefits,” said Dr. Bogojević.
Dr. Marina Soković, Assistant Minister addressed the audience on behalf of the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation, and said that she feels like a part of this event because she has been participating in it for several years. “The laureates of this award are role models for young generations, not only in physics but also in other fields,” said Dr. Soković.
Prof. Dr. Petar Adžić, Manager of the Foundation’s Board of Directors, spoke about the work and legacy of Dr. Marko Jarić. “The goal of the Foundation is to preserve the work of Marko Jarić, not only in science but in general,” said Dr. Adžić.
Dr. Aleksandar Belić, the President of the Foundation’s Board of Directors, spoke about the Foundation’s work and how the prize is awarded. “This is not an award for a long career in which a person took many steps towards the same goal, but for a small number of significant steps or maybe just one that is enough for that person to be recognized at the world level and leave a mark in physics,” explained Dr. Belić.
Academician Zoran Popović, the President of the jury, spoke about the decision to award the Marko Jarić award for 2023, which consists of a diploma and a monetary part, to prof. Dr. Ilija Zeljković and presented the laureate’s scientific biography.
After the prize was awarded and according to tradition, the laureate gave a popular lecture in which he spoke about his scientific journey, how he spread his love for physics during his education in Serbia, but also about building a successful career in the USA. In his lecture, Dr. Zeljković presented the work of his laboratory at Boston College, the issues he deals with in his research and the advances he is making in the field of superconducting materials.
The program was hosted by Marija Đurić.
Photo by: Bojan Džodan/IPB