Jeffrey Lipshultz Earns NSF Early CAREER Award for Research on Titanium-Based Catalysts

Stony Brook University Assistant Professor Jeffrey M. Lipshultz recently received an Early CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for his research developing catalysts based on earth-abundant titanium to promote value-adding chemical transformations of organic molecules driven by light.

The award is bestowed upon early-career faculty who show promise as both researchers and educators, distinguished as up-and-coming professionals poised to advance the mission of their academic departments. As Early CAREER recipients, the professors will receive more than $2.7 million combined in grants to support their research.

Lipshultz, a member of the Department of Chemistry faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences, was awarded $800,566. His project will rationally develop titanium-based catalysts capable of ligand-to-metal charge-transfer (LMCT) excitation to drive the generation and control of high-energy heteroatom centered-radicals.

"Our titanium photocatalysis program is really focused on the understanding of fundamental photochemical phenomena underpinning the catalytic reactions we develop," Lipschultz said. "Support from the NSF through the CAREER program is essential to carrying out this kind of basic science, so I am really appreciative to have been selected for this award. We are just scratching the surface in establishing the relationship between catalyst structure and photochemical reactivity, so the long-term support of this program will allow us to develop the science both within our lab and through our collaborations at SBU, BNL, and elsewhere."

Lipschultz added that he is also very passionate about making photochemical understanding accessible to all chemists, as well as facilitating communication and collaboration across chemical subdisciplines. "The support for our educational and outreach activities, including expanding the reach of the Long Island Photochemistry Symposium - originally started as the SBU-BNL Photochemistry Supergroup - to across the Northeast, is incredibly valuable."

"Dr. Lipshultz's proposed research goals focus on the rational design of photoactive Ti-based complexes for catalytic exploitation to enable synthetic organic transformations with the idea of pushing the boundaries of photocatalysis," said Stanislaus Wong, distinguished professor and chair of the Department of Chemistry. "A signature outreach achievement that he intends to pursue revolved around his initial plan of holding a 'Supergroup Meeting' between our Department of Chemistry at Stony Brook and the Chemistry Division at BNL focused on photochemistry - a notion that has developed over time to now comprise a highly successful annual symposium on photochemistry held at SBU, drawing scores of attendees from across campus, BNL, CUNY, and other local Long Island institutions."

"My warmest congratulations to Professor Lipshultz on receiving an NSF CAREER Award," said David Wrobel, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. "His innovative research in titanium photochemistry and his commitment to building collaborative, student-centered scientific communities epitomize what we stand for in the Department of Chemistry, the College of Arts and Sciences and Stony Brook as a whole. This honor recognizes not only his scientific creativity but also his dedication to mentoring and inspiring future chemists."

Lipshultz began his career in the Department of Chemistry at Stony Brook University as an assistant professor in Summer 2022. He was named a recipient of the 2026 Stony Brook Trustees Faculty Award, which recognizes tenure-track faculty who have completed at least three years at Stony Brook and have established a strong foundation of research and academic excellence in their early years.

His research group explores under-explored concepts in organic and organometallic photochemistry to enable the development of new synthetic technologies. It leverages all available physical and analytical tools to study these unique photochemical phenomena to drive deeper understanding and innovation in catalyst design, structure, and function.

Lipshultz is one of four Stony Brook University faculty to receive an NSF Early CAREER Award in 2026.