For over a century, the Physical Sciences Division at the University of Chicago has been renowned for shaping and defining new fields of discovery in the physical, computational, and mathematical sciences. Our faculty, researchers, and alumni have won 51 Nobel Prizes and 10 Fields Medals. Our faculty have earned 13 National Medals of Science, and we currently have 34 National Academy members. Six NASA missions have been named after our faculty and alumni (Chandrasekhar, Compton, Fermi, Hubble, Parker, and Roman).
These honors are a testament to the division's commitment to pushing the boundaries of knowledge in disciplines such as astronomy & astrophysics, chemistry, computer science, geophysical sciences, mathematics, physics, and statistics. The division's collaborative and innovative spirit continues to foster an environment where scientific pioneers thrive, making it a global leader in the physical, computational, and mathematical sciences and a hub for cutting-edge research.
Nobel Laureates | Wolf Prize | Fields Medal | National Medal of Science | Presidential Medal of Freedom | American Academy of Arts & Sciences | National Academy of Sciences | Guggenheim Fellowships | MacArthur Fellowships
Explore the PSD faculty's latest accolades and honors below.
Recent Accolades and Honors
Chemistry
- The Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique appointed Giulia Galli to its fourth cohort of Fellow-Ambassadors, 6/4/26
- Laura Gagliardi was selected as the 2026 Schrödinger Medalist, 5/5/26
- Chuan He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, 4/28/26
- Anna Wuttig received a 2026 Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, 4/28/26
- Guangbin Dong is the recipient of the 2026 Janssen Prize, 4/8/26
- Paul Alivisatos was featured in the National Academies: New Heroes portrait project, 3/23/26
- Jack Szostak was featured in the National Academies: New Heroes portrait project, 3/23/26
Computer Science
- Rana Hanocka received an NSF CAREER award, 5/20/26
- Alex Kale received an NSF CAREER award, 5/20/26
- Yuxin Chen received an NSF CAREER award, 4/19/26
- Pedro Lopes’ lab won Best Paper Award at the ACM CHI 2026 conference, 4/3/26
Geophysical Sciences
- Alexandra Worden received a Guggenheim Fellowship, 4/14/26
- Vitali Prakapenka received the Gopal K. Shenoy Award, an APS user award, 4/10/26
Mathematics
- Frank Calegari was named a 2026 Simons Fellow in Mathematics, 4/29/26, and elected to the Royal Society, 5/27/26
- Yu Deng received a 2026 Clay Research Award from the Clay Mathematics Institute, 4/14/26
- Tomer Schlank received a 2026 Clay Research Award from the Clay Mathematics Institute, 4/14/26
Physics
- Young-Kee Kim was elected to the Royal Society, 5/27/26
- Michael Levin won a 2026 Frontiers of Science Award, 5/19/26
- Clay Córdova was awarded 2026 New Horizons Prize in Physics, 4/20/26
- Vincenzo Vitelli was named a AAAS fellow, 3/26/26
- Carlos E.M. Wagner was named a AAAS fellow, 3/26/26
Statistics
- Peter McCullagh was awarded the Guy Medal in Gold from Royal Statistical Society, 4/29/26
Chemistry
- Chuan He was named to the National Academy of Inventors Senior Members Class of 2026, 3/11/26
- Anna Wuttig received a Sloan Research Fellowships, 2/17/26
- Bozhi Tian received the Marian and Stuart Rice Research Award, 2/2/26
Computer Science
- Aloni Cohen received a Sloan Research Fellowships, 2/17/26
- Marshini Chetty received a Future of Privacy Forum’s 2026 Privacy Papers for Policymakers Award, 1/27/26
Geophysical Sciences
- Andrew Campbell was named the Louis Block Professor in the Department of the Geophysical Sciences and the College, 1/6/26
Mathematics
- Carlos Kenig won a King Faisal Prize, 1/8/26
- Kevin Corlette was named the George and Elizabeth Yovovich Professor in the Department of Mathematics and the College, 1/6/26
Physics
- Elizabeth Jerison received an NSF CAREER award, 2/26/26
- Zoe Yan received a Sloan Research Fellowships, 2/17/26, and an NSF CAREER award, 2/25/26
- Cheng Chin was named the Horace B. Horton Professor in the Department of Physics, the Enrico Fermi Institute, the James Franck Institute, and the College, 1/6/26
- Margaret Gardel has been named the Edward L. Ryerson Distinguished Service Professor in the Departments of Physics and Molecular Genetics and Cell Biology, the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering, and the College, 1/6/26
- Peter Littlewood has been named the Harry Pratt Judson Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Physics, the James Franck Institute, the Neuroscience Institute, and the College, 1/6/26
Astronomy & Astrophysics
- Daniel Holz was named in Web of Science’s 2025 report of highly cited researchers, 11/12/25
- Wendy Freedman has been selected as the recipient of The Franklin Institute’s 2026 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Physics, 11/11/25
Chemistry
- Qing Dai was named in Web of Science’s 2025 report of highly cited researchers, 11/12/25
- Chuan He was named in Web of Science’s 2025 report of highly cited researchers, 11/12/25
- Wenbin Lin was named in Web of Science’s 2025 report of highly cited researchers, 11/12/25
- Anna Wuttig received an Early Excellence in Science Award, 10/28/25
- Materials Research Society honors Jiwoong Park with Turnbull Lectureship, 10/7/25
Computer Science
- Robert Grossman received a Test of Time Award for graph-theoretic scagnostics, 12/2/25
- The PEERING testbed, created by Nick Feamster and colleagues, received the Test of Time Award at the 2025 ACM Internet Measurement Conference, 11/20/25
- Ian Foster and the Globus Team honored with SC25’s Test of Time Award, 11/13/25
- Fred Chong’s EPiQC project received the IEEE Quantum Technical Community’s Distinguished Synergy Award, 10/6/25
Geophysical Sciences
- Dorian Abbot joined the American Academy of Sciences and Letters, 12/12/25
Mathematics
- Simion Filip received the 2026 AMS-EMS Mikhail Gordin Prize, 12/9/25
- Yu Deng is one of the recipients of the 2026 Leonard Eisenbud Prize for Mathematics and Physics, 11/12/25
- Peter May named one of the recipients of the 2026 AMS Elias M. Stein Mentoring Award, 11/5/25
- Frank Calegari shares 2026 AMS Frank Nelson Cole Prize for Number Theory, 11/4/25
Physics
- Physics World: Top 10 Breakthroughs of the Year includes research from David Awschalom, 12/11/25
- Michael Rust has been selected as a 2025 Innovation Fund Investigator, 12/9/25
- Thomas Witten has received the EPS-SNPD Prize, 11/18/25
- Heinrich M. Jaeger has been selected to receive the American Physical Society’s 2026 Leo P. Kadanoff Prize, 11/5/25
- Peter Littlewood was awarded the 2025 Institute of Physics Gold Medal - Richard Glazebrook Medal and Prize, 10/13/25
- Abigail Vieregg was named a 2025 American Physical Society (APS) Fellow, 10/10/25
Statistics
- Matthew Stephens was named in Web of Science’s 2025 report of highly cited researchers, 11/12/25
Biophysical Sciences
- Tao Pan was named in Web of Science’s 2025 report of highly cited researchers, 11/12/25
Chemistry
- Dmitri Talapin received an ACS Award in Colloid Chemistry, 8/20/25
- John Anderson received a Harry Gray Award for Creative Work in Inorganic Chemistry by a Young Investigator, 8/20/25
- Giulia Galli won the Berni J. Alder CECAM Prize, 6/17/25
Computer Science
- Michael Franklin’s continuous data processing system, TelegraphCQ, receives Test of Time Award at the 2025 Conference of Innovative Data Systems Research, 9/22/25
- Hank Hoffmann earned the SEAMS Most Influential Paper Award, 8/7/25
Physics
- Zoe Yan received a 2025 AFOSR Young Investigator Award, 9/19/25
- Arvind Murugan was named an awardee of the Schmidt Science Polymath Program, 9/19/25
- Robert Wald received a 2025 ICTP Dirac Medal, 8/25/25
- Abigail Vieregg received a 2025 Cottrell SEED Award, 8/22/25
- Nadya Mason was recognized with the Richtmyer Memorial Lecture Award, 8/4/25