Nacho Martin-Fabiani

Nacho Martin-Fabiani is a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and Senior Lecturer in Materials Science and Engineering at Loughborough University. His research group investigates soft materials and surfaces for applications in paints, coatings, inks, and cosmetics, with a particular focus on developing next-generation functional coatings to address healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial resistance.

Dr. Martin-Fabiani completed his undergraduate studies in Materials Physics in Madrid, followed by postgraduate specialization in Polymer Science and Technology. His PhD focused on polymer nanostructures. He joined the University of Surrey as a Research Fellow in 2014, working on environmentally-friendly coating formulations, then moved to Loughborough University in 2016 with a Vice-Chancellor's Fellowship to establish his independent research career.

His primary research interests include soft materials, surfaces, functional coatings, antibacterial surfaces, nanomaterials, and polymer science. His current work develops a platform technology using self-assembly processes that bring functional properties like antibacterial activity to coating surfaces as they dry, with applications in healthcare, corrosion resistance, and air purification.

Dr. Martin-Fabiani has received several prestigious awards including a £1.4 million UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship to create next-generation coatings technology and an EPSRC Strategic Equipment Grant for state-of-the-art microscopy equipment. These grants support seven years of research to translate laboratory innovation to industrial scale.

He collaborates extensively with academic and industry partners including researchers at Claude Bernard University Lyon 1, University of Surrey, ICGM in Montpellier, IEM-CSIC in Madrid, Ulster University, University of Turku, ISIS neutron source, University of the Basque Country, and industry partners like Hempel. His work addresses major global challenges including healthcare-associated infections that kill over 5,500 NHS patients annually and cost more than £2.3 billion per year.