Justin Caram, assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry in the UCLA College, has been named one of 25 Cottrell Scholars for the quality and innovation of his research program and his academic leadership skills. He will receive a $100,000 award for his project “Chemical Physics Informed Design of SWIR Emissive Molecules.”
The Cottrell Scholar program honors and helps to develop outstanding teacher-scholars who are recognized by their scientific communities for the quality and innovation of their research programs and their potential for academic leadership. The program champions the very best early career teacher-scholars in chemistry, physics and astronomy by providing significant discretionary awards for research. Nurturing an interdisciplinary community of outstanding scientific, educational and academic leaders, the program fosters synergy among faculty at major U.S. and Canadian research universities and primarily undergraduate institutions.
Since starting at UCLA in July 2017, Caram has begun developing a world-class research program focused on developing new spectroscopies and materials, with a focus on addressing fundamental questions in chemical photophysics.
Caram earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry at Harvard University and a doctorate in chemistry at the University of Chicago. After doing his postdoctoral research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he joined the chemistry department at UCLA. Caram is the founding member of the Center for Quantum Science and Engineering and a faculty fellow of the Center for Diverse Leadership in Science. In 2020, he received a Faculty Early Career Development award from the National Science Foundation.
