Abraham (Abe) Nitzan, Donner Professor of Physical Sciences and professor of chemistry in Penn’s School of Arts and Sciences has received the Earle K. Plyler Prize for Molecular Spectroscopy & Dynamics. This prize was established in 1976 and is now sponsored by The Journal of Chemical Physics, an AIP Publishing journal. The prize is given for experimental or theoretical achievements, for a single dramatic innovation, or for a series of research contributions which, when integrated, amounts to a major contribution to the field of molecular spectroscopy and dynamics.

Dr. Nitzan’s research focuses on the interaction of light with molecular systems, chemical reactions in condensed phases and interfaces, and charge transfer processes in such environments. In addition to the textbook, Chemical Dynamics in Condensed Phases (Oxford U. Press, 2006), he has published over 300 papers, has been assigned a patent and has given invited talks at more than 150 scientific meetings.