Omar M. Yaghi

Awards & Honours

Awards Won

Honours

Rankings

Covers

Records

Yaghi's career is marked by historic firsts and superlative achievements. He is the first Jordanian-born Nobel laureate in chemistry. His MOFs hold world records for surface area, and his water harvesters have been deployed in some of the driest places on Earth. He has been elected to three national academies and serves as president of the World Cultural Council. His work has been recognized with the Wolf Prize, the Einstein Award, and the King Faisal Prize, among many others.

AwardsYaghi has won numerous major awards, culminating in the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He received the Wolf Prize in Chemistry in 2019, the Albert Einstein World Award of Science in 2017, and the King Faisal International Prize in Science in 2013. Other honors include the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award, the Eni Award, and the VinFuture Prize.

Honours & Distinctions

Member, U.S. National Academy of Sciences

U.S. National Academy of Sciences·2014

Elected for contributions to chemistry.

Member, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina

Leopoldina·2018

Elected for work in materials science.

Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences

American Academy of Arts and Sciences·2023

Elected for achievements in science.

President, World Cultural Council

World Cultural Council·2025

Seventh president of the international organization.

Honorary Doctorate

University of Nottingham·2022

Honorary degree for contributions to chemistry.

Honorary Doctorate

University of Cambridge·2023

Honorary degree for scientific achievements.

Honorary Doctorate

Tsinghua University·2024

Honorary degree for reticular chemistry.

Clarivate Citation Laureate

Clarivate·2018

Predicted Nobel winner in chemistry.

Rankings & Lists

#Laureate

Clarivate Citation Laureate in Chemistry

Clarivate·2018

#Top 2%

Top 2% Most-Cited Scientists Worldwide

Stanford University·2022

#Listed

Nature's 10 People Who Mattered in Science

Nature·2025

#1 in Materials Science

Research.com·2025

Magazine Covers

Nature

2012

Porous materials: The age of MOFs

Science

2014

Water harvesting from air with MOFs

Chemical & Engineering News

2025

Nobel Prize 2025: Reticular Chemistry Comes of Age

Time

2025

The Man Who Built a New World Atom by Atom

Forbes

2025

The Billion-Dollar Pores: Omar Yaghi's MOF Revolution

Records & Feats

Highest surface area of any porous material

Materials Science·2010

Yaghi's MOF-210 has a surface area of 6,240 m²/g, a world record for porous materials.

First Jordanian-born Nobel laureate in chemistry

Awards·2025

Yaghi is the first chemist born in Jordan to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

First MOF with permanent porosity

Career Milestone·1995

In 1995, Yaghi reported the first metal-organic framework with permanent porosity, founding the field.