Joseph Subotnik Wins Presidential Early Career Award

Assistant Professor of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry Joseph Subotnik has received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. This award is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers. Subnotnik received the honor for his work on the dynamics of electron and energy transfer, particularly in the case of solar energy.

During his time as a National Science Foundation (NSF) international postdoctoral fellow, Subotnik worked with his co-researchers Abe Nitzan and Mark Ratner to understand the role of electron-electron correlations. In July 2010, he joined Penn’s Department of Chemistry and currently heads a research group that focuses on three areas in chemical physics: electron and energy transfer, molecular conduction and electronic structure theory.  

Subnotnik was honored with several other awards this year, including an Alfred P. Sloan Fellowship, an ACS HP Outstanding Junior Faculty Award and an NSF CAREER Award.