The Lab on a Chip & Dolomite Pioneers of Miniaturization Lectureship recognises early to mid-career scientists, within 15 years of their PhD, who have made outstanding contributions to the understanding or development of miniaturised systems.
- This award is presented annually.
- The nominations are shortlisted and the winner is selected by the Lab on a Chip Editorial Board and a representative from Dolomite.
- The recipient of this award receives the opportunity to present a lecture at MicroTAS and a contribution of up to $3,000 to cover associated travel and accommodation costs.
Our latest award winner 2022
Professor Yi-Chin Toh
Yi-Chin Toh is currently a Future Fellow and Professor at the Queensland University of Technology. She is trained as a chemical and tissue engineer, having obtained her B.Eng. and PhD from the National University of Singapore. She did her post-doctoral training at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology under Professor Joel Voldman's guidance. Before joining QUT, she led an independent research group as an Assistant Professor at the Department of Biomedical Engineering, National University of Singapore.
The mission of her research group is to develop new animal-alternative technologies so that drug testing and biological experimentation can be conducted in a more sustainable and human-relevant manner.
Her major scientific contribution is in the interfacing of tissue engineering with microfluidic technology to mimic biological complexity but in scalable and manufacturing-compatible formats that will be practical for deployment in routine drug testing. Her work has contributed significantly to understanding human pluripotent stem cell development and mimicking systemic multi-organ interactions, such as metabolic and immune interactions.
She has produced 64 peer-reviewed publications (h-index = 27), 8 patent applications, and over 100 conference presentations. Her works on animal alternative technologies have won accolades, such as the Global 3R Award, and are being featured in the Lab on the Chip Emerging Investigator Series (2019). Yi-Chin serves in the Australian Research Council College of Experts and is an associate editor of AIP Biomicrofluidics and Frontier in Digital Health (Personalised Medicine). She recently joined the Scientific Advisory Committee of Lab on a Chip (2022). She also contributes actively to the organization of the MicroTAS conference series, including the Poster Award Committee (2018-2019) and the Executive Technical Program Committee (ETPC) in 2021.
Read some of Yi-Chin Toh’s recent Lab on a Chip papers:
See all our previous winners
Guidelines for nominators and candidates
Find out who is eligible for this award, about the nomination process, and see who is on the selection panel.
Since 2015, the Lab on a Chip and Dolomite Pioneers of Miniaturization Lectureship has been awarded through a process whereby nominations of candidates are invited from our community. As part of the Royal Society of Chemistry, we believe we have a responsibility to promote inclusivity and accessibility to improve diversity. Where possible, we encourage each nominator to consider nominating candidates of all genders, races, and backgrounds.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the Pioneers of Miniaturization Lectureship, the candidate must:
- Have completed their PhD
- Be actively pursuing an independent research career on miniaturised systems.
- Be at an early-mid career stage of their independent career (typically this will be within 15 years of completing their PhD, but appropriate consideration will be given to those who have taken a career break or followed a different study path).
Please note, nominations are now closed.
Nominations can be made by anyone and must be sent via email. Self-nominations are not permitted. All nominators will be asked to confirm that, to the best of their knowledge, their nominee’s professional standing is such that there is no confirmed or potential impediment to them receiving the Lectureship.
To nominate a candidate, please provide:
- A recommendation letter, including the name, contact details and website URL of the nominee
- A one-page CV for the nominee, including their date of birth, summary of education and career, a list of up to five of their top independent publications, total numbers of publications
- A one-page statement of achievement with a lay summary, written by the nominee describing their best accomplishments
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A supporting letter of recommendation from an independent referee. This could be for example the nominee’s post doc or PhD supervisor.
Consideration is given to all information provided in the letters of recommendation, candidate CV and nomination form. The winner of the Lectureship is selected by a panel of Editorial Board members and a Dolomite representative.
Selection panel
Previous winners
2021: Keisuke Goda, University of Tokyo
2020: Wilbur Lam, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University
2019: Hang Lu, Georgia Institute of Technology
2018: Sunghoon Kwon, Seoul National University
2017: Aaron Wheeler, University of Toronto
Contact Lab on a Chip Editorial Office
- Email:
- the team