The award is named after Richard Adolf Zsigmondy (1865-1929) who was acknowledged by Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1925 "for his demonstration of the heterogenous nature of colloid solutions and for the methods he used, which have since become fundamental in modern colloid chemistry."

The Zsigmondy Award is intended to recognize significant contribution to all fields of aerosol science achieved by Hungarian researchers and/or the extraordinary service for the HAeS. The Award Committee is composed of the board, past president of the HAeS and the former awardees. The chair of the committee is elected by the Award Committee for 3 years with one possible prolongation.

Nominations should be sent at least 1 month before the next Hungarian Aerosol Conference to the chairperson. Any researcher active in aerosol science and technology is eligible and may be nominated by members of HAeS. A nomination is made by a letter of justification including a brief curriculum vitae and a bibliography. The committee reviews all nominations in closed session. After a discussion of the candidates the Award Committee votes on the candidates. The voting procedure is decided by the Award Committee.

The chairman for 2022–2025 is András Gelencsér, University of Pannonia.