Omar M. Yaghi
Faculty facts
First name
Omar M.Last name
YaghiAcademic title and academic unit
Former assistant professor
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Status
FormerAward details
Distinguished memberships and honors
National Science Foundation Early Career Development Program
1997
Received while at ASU
Highly prestigious awards
Nobel Foundation
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
2025
Faculty spotlight
Spotlight title
Nobel laureateThumbnail image
Bio image
Bio
Former ASU assistant professor Omar Yaghi was the recipient of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his pioneering work in reticular chemistry and the development of metal-organic frameworks — porous crystalline materials capable of storing gases and other molecules. Currently a professor of chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, Yaghi made his Nobel prize-winning discoveries at ASU in the 1990s in collaboration with Professor Michael O’ Keeffe. Yaghi’s work in creating the first stable metal-organic frameworks transformed materials science and opened the door to new possibilities for cleaner energy, water harvesting and carbon capture, and continues to inspire new technologies and research worldwide. Between 2000 and 2010, Yaghi ranked among the five most-cited chemists in the world, underscoring the global impact of his work.
Photo of ASU Professor Emeritus Michael O’Keeffe (left) and UC Berkeley Professor Omar Yaghi (right) by Samantha Chow/Arizona State University.