News

JFI researchers, led by Heinrich Jaeger, awarded a 1.3M Keck Research Grant  

Arvind Murugan promoted to Professor in the Department of Physics.

Laura Gagliardi has just been named for the 2026 Eni Award for Energy Frontiers.  Established in 2008, the Eni Award is one of the most prestigious international prizes in energy and environmental science — often described as the "Nobel Prize of energy research." Past laureates include Omar Yaghi (2018, Energy Transition).

https://www.eni.com/en-IT/strategic-vision/innovation/eni-award.html

Prof. Jiwoong Park is one of thirteen UChicago faculty members to receive named, distinguished service professorships in July 2026. Prof. Park will be the James Franck Professor of Chemistry. 

Dr. Michelle Brann (a former student of Prof. Steven J. Sibener) won the ACS Astrochemistry Division Thesis Prize. She received a plaque commemorating the award at the Spring ACS meeting in Atlanta in March. 
 

Laura Gagliardi awarded 2026 WATOC Schrödinger medal

Vincenzo Vitelli has been named a AAAS Fellow.

Elizabeth Jerison and Zoe Yan have each recieved NSF CAREER awards. Jerison's project is titled, "A Dynamical Systems Framework for Systemic Inflammatory Response." Yan's project is titled, "Ultrapolar Molecules: New Opportunities for Quantum Simulation."

Three U Chicago scientists have developed a new method of creating infrared light using quantum dots. The results have been published in Nature Photonics.

A new study by Arvind Murugan's group was published in Science which describes proofreading mechanisms used by cells to accurately replicate DNA. Riccardo Ravasio et al developed a model to compare the time lost in an error jam versus the time taken to correct the mutation.

Zoe Yan and Jack Covey named 2026 Sloan Fellows

Research from William Irvine's group was featured on the cover of PNAS this week. Pictured are 3D trajectories of turbulent particles colored by speed, showing two large vortices. Takumi Matsuzawa, Minhui Zhu et al. observed the expansion and decay of a blob of turbulence created in the center of a tank of still water. The results revealed steep fronts separating turbulent and undisturbed regions, the nonlinear transport and decay of the turbulent blob, and a persistent signature of turbulence late into the decay process.

Prof. Bozhi Tian, Department of Chemistry, received the 2026 Marian and Stuart Rice Research Award. This honor is provided by the Physical Sciences Division and offers $100,000 for intellectually exciting and innovative research ventures that enable new research directions.

Article from Prof. Steven Sibener , "Diffusivity and adlayer formation of C60 on oxygen decorated moiré patterned graphene on Ru(0001)" is featured on the cover of JVSTA. Two-dimensional (2D) materials provide versatile platforms for next-generation devices in quantum sensing, computation, catalysis, and photonics.

Prof. Thomas Witten has been awarded the 2025 Prize from European Physical Society Statistical and Nonlinear Physics Division:   
 
"for his seminal contributions to the statistical physics of aggregation, soft matter, and complex fluids, and for unveiling principles in the dynamics of polymers, interfaces, and disordered materials.”