On Friday, the Tyrolean provincial government awarded Francesca Ferlaino the Tyrolean Order of the Eagle in Gold. This award is presented to individuals who share a close bond with Tyrol and who, through their dedication, have contributed to the province’s development in their own way.
“Over the years, the honorees have left their mark on Tyrol—in business, science, politics, and society. Their career paths could not be more different, and yet they are united by their commitment to our state,” said Tyrolean Governor Anton Mattle at the award ceremony. Physicist Francesca Ferlaino, Austria’s “Scientist of the Year” and the new recipient of the Tyrolean Order of the Eagle in Gold, is among the most influential researchers in the field of quantum physics. With groundbreaking experiments and internationally recognized research achievements—including the world’s first Bose-Einstein condensation of erbium atoms—she has helped establish Innsbruck as a leading center for quantum research.
Francesca Ferlaino has been living in Tyrol for 20 years, where she has now put down roots. “It was clear to me: if I want to learn new techniques and conduct research at the highest level, then this is the place,” she said in an interview. After moving to the University of Innsbruck, she soon headed her own research group and in 2014 became a university professor and scientific director at the Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Information (IQOQI) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences. She gained international recognition, among other things, for receiving three ERC grants and for her pioneering work in the field of suprasolid states in the laboratory. In addition, Ferlaino is deeply committed to science communication and equal opportunity, for example through the “Atom*innen” network she founded.
The Tyrolean Order of the Eagle was established by the Tyrolean State Parliament in 1970. It honors individuals whose visits and stays in Tyrol, or whose outstanding friendly relations with the state of Tyrol, are of particular political, economic, or cultural significance. This award is conferred in three classes: the Grand Tyrolean Order of the Eagle, the Tyrolean Order of the Eagle in Gold, and the Tyrolean Order of the Eagle in Silver.