Chemistry 2025 · Announced Oct 8
Susumu Kitagawa
The chemist who showed frameworks can breathe gas in and out.
Born 1951 · Japan · Kyoto University
36 yrs
The wait, from Robson's first framework (1989) to the prize
1951
Year born
3
People sharing this prize
Oct 8
Announced in 2025
Their part in the prize
They linked metal atoms with long molecules to make crystals full of empty space. Gases and liquids can flow in and out of the holes.
Why it matters
These frameworks can pull water from desert air, trap carbon dioxide, and store gases. One gram can have the inside area of a football field.
The road to the prize
- 1989Robson builds a roomy crystal from copper and long molecules.
- 1997Kitagawa shows gases can move in and out of such frameworks.
- 1999Yaghi makes MOF-5, a very stable framework.
- 2025Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
Shared with
The official reason for all 3: "for the development of metal–organic frameworks"