Nobel laureates join Korea University as distinguished professors

Susumu Kitagawa, left, a professor at Kyoto University, and Omar Yaghi, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, winners of the 2025 Nobel Prize in chemistry / Courtesy of Kyoto University iCeMS and University of California, Berkely

Korea University appointed the 2025 Nobel laureates in chemistry — Omar Yaghi of the University of California, Berkeley, and Susumu Kitagawa of Kyoto University — as distinguished professors at the KU-KIST Graduate School of Converging Science and Technology.

The move marks a significant push in the university’s effort to establish itself as a global center for interdisciplinary research targeting pressing challenges in energy, environmental sustainability and biotechnology.

Yaghi and Kitagawa, widely regarded as pioneers in the field of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), were awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in chemistry for defining and expanding the field’s scientific foundations.

According to the university, the two professors had already agreed to join the Crimson Project — an international research initiative focused on addressing critical global research priorities — and accepted appointments as distinguished professors before the Nobel Prize announcement.

Their win on Oct. 8 has injected momentum into the initiative, positioning the Crimson Project for an accelerated phase of growth and development.

Yaghi, who developed the concepts of MOFs and covalent organic frameworks (COFs), has reshaped modern chemistry through his work with materials used in energy storage, carbon capture and biomedical applications.

At Korea University, he will take part in joint research projects, advise on research strategy, and developing graduate students and early-career scientists. He is also slated to deliver a keynote address on next-generation energy and environmental materials at the university’s Next Intelligence Forum in April 2026.

Kitagawa, who was the first to experimentally demonstrate the high-pressure gas adsorption properties of MOFs, has spearheaded global research into their structural diversity and functions.

As a distinguished professor, he will collaborate on developing new MOF-based applications and share the latest research trends through seminars, workshops and graduate-level courses.

The university said that bringing the two Nobel laureates into its faculty will accelerate its push to generate research aimed at solving substantial global challenges and strengthen its standing as a leading research institution.

It noted that extensive international networks and experience are expected to strengthen Korea University’s scientific capacity, cultivate emerging researchers and enhance its global role in tackling urgent issues facing humanity.