Nobel Prize 2025 in Chemistry, Winner Name, Contribution

2025

Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson and Omar Yaghi

For metal-organic frameworks (MOF)

2024

David Baker

For computational protein design

2024

Demis Hassabis, John Jumper

For protein structure prediction

2023

Moungi Bawendi, Louis Brus, Aleksey Yekimov

For the discovery and synthesis of quantum dots

2022

Carolyn Bertozzi, Morten Meldal, K. Barry Sharpless

For the development of click chemistry and bioorthogonal chemistry

2021

Benjamin List, David W.C. MacMillan

For the development of asymmetric organocatalysis

2020

Emmanuelle Charpentier, Jennifer A. Doudna

For the development of a method for genome editing

2019

John B. Goodenough, M. Stanley Whittingham, Akira Yoshino

For the development of lithium-ion batteries

2018

Frances H. Arnold

For the directed evolution of enzymes

2018

George P. Smith, Sir Gregory P. Winter

For the phage display of peptides and antibodies

2017

Jacques Dubochet, Joachim Frank, Richard Henderson

For developing cryo-electron microscopy for high-resolution structure determination of biomolecules in solution

2016

Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir J. Fraser Stoddart, Bernard L. Feringa

For the design and synthesis of molecular machines

2015

Tomas Lindahl, Paul Modrich, Aziz Sancar

For mechanistic studies of DNA repair

2014

Eric Betzig, Stefan W. Hell, William E. Moerner

For the development of super-resolved fluorescence microscopy

2013

Martin Karplus, Michael Levitt, Arieh Warshel

For the development of multiscale models for complex chemical systems

2012

Robert J. Lefkowitz, Brian Kobilka

For studies of G-protein-coupled receptors

2011

Dan Shechtman

For the discovery of quasicrystals

2010

Richard F. Heck, Ei-ichi Negishi, Akira Suzuki

For palladium-catalyzed cross couplings in organic synthesis

2009

Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Thomas A. Steitz, Ada E. Yonath

For studies of the structure and function of the ribosome

2008

Osamu Shimomura, Martin Chalfie, Roger Y. Tsien

For the discovery and development of the green fluorescent protein, GFP

2007

Gerhard Ertl

For his studies of chemical processes on solid surfaces

2006

Roger D. Kornberg

For his studies of the molecular basis of eukaryotic transcription

2005

Yves Chauvin, Robert H. Grubbs, Richard R. Schrock

For the development of the metathesis method in organic synthesis

2004

Aaron Ciechanover, Avram Hershko, Irwin Rose

For the discovery of ubiquitin-mediated protein degradation

2003

Peter Agre

For the discovery of water channels

2003

Roderick MacKinnon

For structural and mechanistic studies of ion channels

2002

John B. Fenn, Koichi Tanaka

For development of soft desorption ionisation methods for mass spectrometric analyses of biological macromolecules

2002

Kurt Wüthrich

For development of nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy for determining 3D structure of biological macromolecules in solution

2001

William Knowles, Ryoji Noyori

For work on chirally catalysed hydrogenation reactions

2001

K. Barry Sharpless

For work on chirally catalysed oxidation reactions

2000

Alan Heeger, Alan MacDiarmid, Hideki Shirakawa

For the discovery and development of conductive polymers

1999

Ahmed Zewail

For studies of the transition states of chemical reactions using femtosecond spectroscopy

1998

Walter Kohn

For development of the density-functional theory

1998

John Pople

For development of computational methods in quantum chemistry

1997

Paul D. Boyer, John E. Walker

For elucidation of the enzymatic mechanism underlying ATP synthesis

1997

Jens C. Skou

For first discovery of an ion-transporting enzyme, Na+, K+-ATPase

1996

Robert F. Curl Jr., Sir Harold Kroto, Richard E. Smalley

For discovery of fullerenes

1995

Paul J. Crutzen, Mario J. Molina, F. Sherwood Rowland

For work in atmospheric chemistry, especially on ozone formation and decomposition

1994

George A. Olah

For contribution to carbocation chemistry

1993

Kary B. Mullis

For invention of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method

1993

Michael Smith

For contributions to site-directed mutagenesis for protein studies

1992

Rudolph A. Marcus

For contributions to the theory of electron transfer reactions in chemical systems

1991

Richard R. Ernst

For contributions to the development of high-resolution NMR spectroscopy

1990

Elias James Corey

For the development of the theory and methodology of organic synthesis

1989

Sidney Altman, Thomas R. Cech

For discovery of catalytic properties of RNA

1988

Johann Deisenhofer, Robert Huber, Hartmut Michel

For determination of the 3D structure of a photosynthetic reaction centre

1987

Donald J. Cram, Jean-Marie Lehn, Charles J. Pedersen

For development and use of molecules with structure-specific interactions of high selectivity

1986

Dudley R. Herschbach, Yuan T. Lee, John C. Polanyi

For contributions concerning dynamics of chemical elementary processes

1985

Herbert A. Hauptman, Jerome Karle

For development of direct methods for determination of crystal structures

1984

Bruce Merrifield

For development of methodology for chemical synthesis on a solid matrix

1983

Henry Taube

For work on mechanisms of electron transfer reactions, especially in metal complexes

1982

Aaron Klug

For development of crystallographic electron microscopy and structural elucidation of nucleic acid-protein complexes

1981

Kenichi Fukui, Roald Hoffmann

For theories concerning the course of chemical reactions, developed independently

1980

Paul Berg

For fundamental studies of the biochemistry of nucleic acids, especially recombinant DNA

1980

Walter Gilbert, Frederick Sanger

For contributions concerning the determination of base sequences in nucleic acids

1979

Herbert C. Brown, Georg Wittig

For development of boron- and phosphorus-containing compounds as reagents in organic synthesis

1978

Peter Mitchell

For contribution to understanding of biological energy transfer via chemiosmotic theory

1977

Ilya Prigogine

For contributions to non-equilibrium thermodynamics, particularly dissipative structures

1976

William Lipscomb

For studies on structure of boranes illuminating problems of chemical bonding

1975

John Cornforth

For work on stereochemistry of enzyme-catalyzed reactions

1975

Vladimir Prelog

For research into stereochemistry of organic molecules and reactions

1974

Paul J. Flory

For achievements in physical chemistry of macromolecules

1973

Ernst Otto Fischer, Geoffrey Wilkinson

For pioneering work on organometallic “sandwich” compounds

1972

Christian Anfinsen

For work on ribonuclease connecting amino acid sequence to biologically active conformation

1972

Stanford Moore, William H. Stein

For understanding connection between chemical structure and catalytic activity of ribonuclease

1971

Gerhard Herzberg

For contributions to knowledge of electronic structure and geometry of molecules, particularly free radicals

1970

Luis Leloir

For discovery of sugar nucleotides and their role in carbohydrate biosynthesis

1969

Derek Barton, Odd Hassel

For contributions to the development of concept of conformation and its application in chemistry

1968

Lars Onsager

For discovery of reciprocal relations fundamental for thermodynamics of irreversible processes

1967

Manfred Eigen, Ronald G.W. Norrish, George Porter

For studies of extremely fast chemical reactions using short pulses of energy

1966

Robert S. Mulliken

For fundamental work on chemical bonds and electronic structure using molecular orbital method

1965

Robert B. Woodward

For outstanding achievements in the art of organic synthesis

1964

Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin

For determination by X-ray techniques of structures of important biochemical substances

1963

Karl Ziegler, Giulio Natta

For discoveries in chemistry and technology of high polymers

1962

Max F. Perutz, John C. Kendrew

For studies of structures of globular proteins

1961

Melvin Calvin

For research on carbon dioxide assimilation in plants

1960

Willard F. Libby

For method to use carbon-14 for age determination in various sciences

1959

Jaroslav Heyrovsky

For discovery and development of polarographic methods of analysis

1958

Frederick Sanger

For work on structure of proteins, especially insulin

1957

Lord Todd

For work on nucleotides and nucleotide co-enzymes

1956

Sir Cyril Hinshelwood, Nikolay Semenov

For researches into mechanism of chemical reactions

1955

Vincent du Vigneaud

For work on biochemically important sulfur compounds, especially first synthesis of a polypeptide hormone

1954

Linus Pauling

For research into nature of chemical bond and elucidation of complex substances

1953

Hermann Staudinger

For discoveries in macromolecular chemistry

1952

Archer J.P. Martin, Richard L.M. Synge

For invention of partition chromatography

1951

Edwin M. McMillan, Glenn T. Seaborg

For discoveries in chemistry of transuranium elements

1950

Otto Diels, Kurt Alder

For discovery and development of diene synthesis

1949

William F. Giauque

For contributions in chemical thermodynamics, especially at extremely low temperatures

1948

Arne Tiselius

For research on electrophoresis and adsorption analysis of serum proteins

1947

Sir Robert Robinson

For investigations on plant products of biological importance, especially alkaloids

1946

James B. Sumner

For discovery that enzymes can be crystallized

1946

John H. Northrop, Wendell M. Stanley

For preparation of enzymes and virus proteins in pure form

1945

Artturi Virtanen

For research and inventions in agricultural and nutrition chemistry, especially fodder preservation method

1944

Otto Hahn

For discovery of fission of heavy nuclei

1943

George de Hevesy

For use of isotopes as tracers in study of chemical processes

1942

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1941

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1940

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1939

Adolf Butenandt

For work on sex hormones

1939

Leopold Ruzicka

For work on polymethylenes and higher terpenes

1938

Richard Kuhn

For work on carotenoids and vitamins

1937

Norman Haworth

For investigations on carbohydrates and vitamin C

1937

Paul Karrer

For investigations on carotenoids, flavins, and vitamins A and B2

1936

Peter Debye

For contributions to molecular structure via dipole moments and X-ray/electron diffraction in gases

1935

Frédéric Joliot, Irène Joliot-Curie

In recognition of their synthesis of new radioactive elements

1934

Harold C. Urey

For discovery of heavy hydrogen

1933

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1932

Irving Langmuir

For discoveries and investigations in surface chemistry

1931

Carl Bosch, Friedrich Bergius

In recognition of contributions to the invention and development of chemical high-pressure methods

1930

Hans Fischer

For researches into the constitution of haemin and chlorophyll and synthesis of haemin

1929

Arthur Harden, Hans von Euler-Chelpin

For investigations on fermentation of sugar and fermentative enzymes

1928

Adolf Windaus

For research into constitution of sterols and their connection with vitamins

1927

Heinrich Wieland

For investigations of constitution of bile acids and related substances

1926

The Svedberg

For work on disperse systems

1925

Richard Zsigmondy

For demonstration of heterogeneous nature of colloid solutions and methods fundamental to colloid chemistry

1924

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1923

Fritz Pregl

For invention of method of micro-analysis of organic substances

1922

Francis W. Aston

For discovery of isotopes in non-radioactive elements using mass spectrograph and enunciation of whole-number rule

1921

Frederick Soddy

For contributions to chemistry of radioactive substances and investigations into origin and nature of isotopes

1920

Walther Nernst

In recognition of his work in thermochemistry

1919

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1918

Fritz Haber

For synthesis of ammonia from its elements

1917

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1916

No Nobel Prize awarded

Prize money allocated to special fund

1915

Richard Willstätter

For researches on plant pigments, especially chlorophyll

1914

Theodore W. Richards

For accurate determinations of atomic weight of many chemical elements

1913

Alfred Werner

For work on linkage of atoms in molecules, opening new fields especially in inorganic chemistry

1912

Victor Grignard

For discovery of Grignard reagent advancing organic chemistry

1912

Paul Sabatier

For method of hydrogenating organic compounds in presence of finely disintegrated metals, advancing organic chemistry

1911

Marie Curie

For discovery of radium and polonium, isolation of radium, and study of its compounds

1910

Otto Wallach

For services to organic chemistry and chemical industry via pioneering work on alicyclic compounds

1909

Wilhelm Ostwald

For work on catalysis and investigations into principles governing chemical equilibria and reaction rates

1908

Ernest Rutherford

For investigations into disintegration of elements and chemistry of radioactive substances

1907

Eduard Buchner

For biochemical research and discovery of cell-free fermentation

1906

Henri Moissan

For investigation and isolation of fluorine and development of Moissan electric furnace

1905

Adolf von Baeyer

For advancement of organic chemistry and chemical industry through work on dyes and hydroaromatic compounds

1904

Sir William Ramsay

For discovery of inert gaseous elements in air and determination of their place in periodic system

1903

Svante Arrhenius

For extraordinary services to chemistry via electrolytic theory of dissociation

1902

Emil Fischer

For extraordinary services via work on sugar and purine syntheses

1901

Jacobus H. van ‘t Hoff

For discovery of laws of chemical dynamics and osmotic pressure in solutions