Professor M.I. Dyakonov worked at Ioffe Institute in St. Petersburg (1962-1998) and at University of Montpellier (1998-2009). Presently professor emeritus at University of Montpellier. Awards: State Prize of USSR (1976), Ioffe prize of the Russian Academy of Sciences (1995), Beller Lectureship Award by American Physical Society (2009), Prix Félix Robin de la Societé Française de Physique (2009), Honorary Member, Ioffe Institute in St. Petersburg (2014), Outstanding Referee for APS journals (2015).