Irving Langmuir Award

The Irving Langmuir Prize in Chemical Physics is awarded annually, in even years by the American Chemical Society and in odd years by the American Physical Society. The award is meant to recognize and encourage outstanding interdisciplinary research in chemistry and physics, in the spirit of Irving Langmuir. A nominee must have made an outstanding contribution to chemical physics or physical chemistry within the 10 years preceding the year in which the award is made. The award will be granted without restriction, except that the recipient must be a resident of the United States.

The award was established in 1931 by Dr. A.C. Langmuir, brother of Nobel Prize-winning chemist Irving Langmuir, to recognize the best young chemist in the United States. A $10,000 prize was to be awarded annually by the American Chemical Society. The first recipient was Linus Pauling. In 1964, the General Electric Foundation took over the financial backing of the prize, which was renamed the Irving Langmuir Award and the modern selection process was created. In 2006 the GE Global Research took over sponsorship of the award, and since 2009 the award has been co-sponsored between GE Global Research and the ACS Division of Physical Chemistry.

Past recipients
Source: American Physical Society and American Chemical Society • 2023 Valeria Molinero

• 2022 Heather C. Allen

• 2021 Jacob Klein

• 2019 Devarajan (Dave) Thirumalai

• 2017 Emily A. Carter

• 2016 George C. Schatz

• 2015 Jens K. Norskov

• 2014 Mark A. Johnson

• 2013 Wilson Ho

• 2012 James L. Skinner

• 2011 Stephen Leone

• 2010 A. Welford Castleman Jr.

• 2009 William E. Moerner

• 2008 Daniel M. Neumark

• 2007 Gabor A. Somorjai

• 2006 F. Fleming Crim, Jr.

• 2005 David Chandler

• 2004 Mark A. Ratner

• 2003 Phaedon Avouris

• 2002 Mostafa A. El-Sayed

• 2001 Louis E. Brus

• 2000 Richard J. Saykally

• 1999 Daniel Kivelson

• 1998 Alexander Pines

• 1997 Jack H. Freed

• 1996 William Carl Lineberger

• 1995 George B. Benedek

• 1994 Robert G. Parr

• 1993 J. David Litster

• 1992 John Ross

• 1991 Richard E. Smalley

• 1990 William H. Miller

• 1989 Frank H. Stillinger

• 1988 Richard B. Bernstein

• 1987 Martin Karplus

• 1986 Sidney W. Benson

• 1985 Richard N. Zare

• 1984 Robert W. Zwanzig

• 1983 Dudley R. Herschbach

• 1982 Benjamin Widom

• 1981 Willis H. Flygare

• 1980 William A. Klemperer

• 1979 Donald S. McClure

• 1978 Rudolph A. Marcus

• 1977 Aneesur Rahman

• 1976 John S. Waugh

• 1975 Robert H. Cole

• 1974 Harry G. Drickamer

• 1973 Peter M. Rentzepis

• 1972 Harden M. McConnell

• 1971 Michael E. Fisher

• 1970 John A. Pople

• 1969 Charles P. Slichter

• 1968 Henry Eyring

• 1967 John C. Slater

• 1966 Herbert S. Gutowsky

• 1965 John H. Van Vleck

• 1936 John Gamble Kirkwood

• 1933 Frank Spedding

• 1932 Oscar K. Rice

• 1931 Linus Pauling