July 14, 2026
In June, the W. M. Keck Foundation awarded UChicago $1.3M for the project, “Non-Reciprocal Matter,” led by Heinrich Jaeger, the Sewell Avery Distinguished Service Professor in Physics, the James Franck Institute, and the College.
The W. M. Keck Research Program seeks to benefit humanity by supporting basic science research projects that are distinctive and novel in their approach, question the prevailing paradigm, or have the potential to break open new territory in their field. Past grants have been awarded to support pioneering biological and physical science research and engineering, including the development of promising new technologies, instrumentation, or methodologies.
This project seeks to explore nonreciprocal interactions—phenomena where the action of one component on another is not balanced by an equal and opposite response. A central goal is the development of a unifying foundational framework encompassing both classical and quantum non-reciprocal matter, enabling the prediction, access, and control of non-reciprocal matter.
“Exploring the unusual properties of nonreciprocal matter across scales from nanometers to macroscopic systems and developing a unified framework that bridges the classical and quantum realms is both challenging and exciting. We are grateful for the support from the Keck Foundation,” said Jaeger.
The project has the potential to open a new scientific frontier across several subfields of condensed matter physics, physical chemistry, and engineering. Its wide scope requires an intellectually broad and highly interactive team of theorists and experimentalists. UChicago is one of the very few places where leading researchers interested in these different manifestations of nonreciprocity work in close proximity—both physically and intellectually—on the same campus and with strong records of successful interdisciplinary collaboration.
Co-PIs on the project include Chemistry professors Norbert Scherer and Suri Vaikuntanathan; Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering professor Aashish Clerk; and Physics professors Andrew Higginbotham, William Irvine, and Vincenzo Vitelli. Peter Littlewood (1955–2026), the Harry Pratt Judson Distinguished Service Professor in Physics, was also a key member of the project team.
This is the first grant that the University has received from the Keck Foundation since 2018.
About the W. M. Keck Foundation
The W. M. Keck Foundation was established in 1954 in Los Angeles by William Myron Keck, founder of The Superior Oil Company. One of the nation’s largest philanthropic organizations, the W. M. Keck Foundation supports outstanding science, engineering, and medical research. The Foundation also supports undergraduate education and maintains a program within Southern California to support arts and culture, education, health, and community service projects.