October 15, 2024
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation announced today the 2024 class of Packard Fellows for Science and Engineering, including UChicago assistant professor of physics Zoe Yan. This year’s class features 20 innovative early-career scientists and engineers, who will each receive $875,000 over five years to pursue their research. This year’s class of Fellows is pushing the boundaries of science and innovation in their fields of study, from advances in detecting and treating serious diseases to understanding how species react to changing climates to energy-efficient electronics.
Yan, who is also a member of the James Franck Institute, uses ultracold molecules to create and study novel types of quantum matter. “These gases that we create, with the help of laser cooling, are a million times colder than outer space—basically the coldest matter in the known universe,” said Yan. “When matter is cooled to such temperatures, the strange and beautiful effects of ‘quantum many-body physics’—the behavior of particles strongly interacting under the laws of quantum mechanics—can be studied in a controlled, pristine way.”
Specifically, Yan's lab is trying to leverage the relatively new quantum platform of cold polar molecules to engineer a special type of ‘superfluid’ state. “Imagine a fluid that flows forever without friction,” said Yan. “Because of the unique set of tools we have to manipulate ultracold molecules, it may be possible to discover and probe states of matter that don’t exist in nature.”
A greater understanding of quantum materials has historically advanced technology on multiple fronts, including electronics, computing, and chemicals. “For example, one outstanding challenge on the technological front is the development of room-temperature superconductors,” noted Yan. Quantum simulations of exotic forms of superconductivity and superfluidity could provide a roadmap for the eventual development of superconductors on an industrial scale.
“These scientists and engineers are the architects of tomorrow, leading innovation with bold ideas and unyielding determination,” said Nancy Lindborg, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Packard Foundation. “Their work today will be the foundation for the breakthroughs of the future, inspiring the next wave of discovery and invention.”
Since 1988, the Packard Fellowships for Science and Engineering have encouraged visionary work by providing maximum flexibility through unrestricted funds that can be used in any way the Fellows choose, including paying for necessities like childcare.
This latitude gives Fellows the opportunity to experiment and lead cutting-edge research, which has led to critical advancements that impact our daily lives. From studying endangered species and improving clean energy technology to making connections between DNA and disease and supporting well-rounded health care, the Packard Fellows are contributing to a future where people and nature can flourish.
“It’s a huge honor for me to be awarded the Packard Fellowship,” said Yan. “Many of my mentors, from the PhD level to the postdoc level to senior colleagues here at Chicago, were also Packard fellows, and it’s humbling and inspiring to be inducted into this group of alumni. The fellowship will allow me to explore high-risk, high-reward endeavors with my group that normally might not be funded through other means.”
Fellows have gone on to earn some of the most esteemed recognitions, including Nobel Prizes in Chemistry and Physics, which includes last year’s Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, Moungi Bawendi, and this year’s Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, David Baker. Fellows have been awarded Fields Medals, Alan T. Waterman Awards, Breakthrough Prizes, Kavli Prizes, and elections to the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine.
The Packard Fellowships were inspired by David Packard’s passion for science and engineering and his commitment to strengthening university-based science and engineering programs in the United States. He recognized that the success of the Hewlett-Packard Company, which he co-founded, was derived in large measure from research and development in university laboratories. It was with this spirit that the Foundation launched the Packard Fellowships for Science and Engineering program 36 years ago. Since its inception, the Packard Foundation has awarded nearly $500 million to support 715 scientists and engineers from 55 universities.
“This extraordinary class of Fellows joins the community of Packard Fellows who are pushing the boundaries of innovation and discovery to contribute to science and engineering in ways that make a real difference to our world,” said Dr. Richard Alley, Chair of the Packard Fellowships for Science & Engineering Advisory Panel, and 1991 Packard Fellow. “We look forward to welcoming them to the Packard Fellows community and supporting them as they collaborate, learn, and create the future together.”
Each year, the Foundation invites 50 universities to nominate two faculty members for consideration. The Packard Fellowships Advisory Panel, a group of 12 internationally recognized scientists and engineers, evaluates the nominations and recommends Fellows for approval by the Packard Foundation Board of Trustees.