Northern Kentucky, USA: Indian American scientist Prashant K. Jain has been selected as the recipient of the 2025 Craver Award by the Coblentz Society for his groundbreaking contributions to vibrational spectroscopy. His research focuses on nanoscale light-matter interactions and energy conversion, advancing the field of spectroscopy.

Jain, who serves as the G. L. Clark Professor of Physical Chemistry at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, has made significant discoveries in plasmon resonances within quantum dots and plasmonic redox catalysis. He will receive the prestigious award at the SciX conference, scheduled to take place from October 5-10, 2025, at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Northern Kentucky.

Beyond his work in the Department of Chemistry, Jain is also affiliated with the Materials Research Laboratory and holds ties with the Illinois Quantum Information Science and Technology Center (IQUIST) and the Department of Physics.

With a prolific academic career, Jain has authored more than 120 research papers, accumulating over 34,000 citations. Recognized as a Highly Cited Researcher by Clarivate Analytics and Elsevier Scopus, he has received numerous accolades, including the Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering, the Leo Hendrik Baekeland Award, the ACS Kavli Emerging Leader in Chemistry Award, and the NSF CAREER Award.

Jain completed his Ph.D. in physical chemistry at Georgia Tech under the mentorship of M. A. El-Sayed, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University. He also served as a Miller Fellow at UC Berkeley before joining the University of Illinois.

Established in 2007, the Craver Award honors young scientists who have made notable advancements in applied analytical vibrational spectroscopy. The award is named after Clara D. Craver, a pioneer in infrared vibrational spectroscopy, known for her work in developing spectral databases essential to modern spectroscopy.