On March 17, 2025, Dr. Jacek Kozuch of Freie Universität Berlin was honored with the prestigious Nernst-Haber-Bodenstein Prize. The pize, awarded annually by the German Bunsen Society for Physical Chemistry, recognizes outstanding contributions by young scientists in the field of physical chemistry.

Dr. Kozuch leads the Vibrational Bio-Nanospectroscopy research group at Freie Universität Berlin. His research focuses on infrared spectroscopy, nanospectroscopy, antimicrobial resistance, electrostatics, and catalysis. After earning his chemistry diploma and PhD at the Technical University of Berlin, he continued his postdoctoral studies at Stanford University in the United States before establishing his research group in Berlin.

The laudatory speech was given by Prof. Dr. Joachim Heberle, an expert in molecular biophysics with an extensive research background in the structure and function of membrane proteins and vibrational spectroscopy techniques for studying these proteins. He served as speaker of the SFB 1078 from 2017 - 2024.

Both Dr. Kozuch and Prof. Heberle were active members of the SFB 1078, which investigated protonation dynamics in protein function. The SFB 1078 concluded its research activities at the end of 2024, leaving a lasting impact on the field of biophysics through its contributions to the understanding of molecular interactions at a fundamental level.

The award ceremony took place during the 124th Bunsen Conference in Leipzig, highlighting the significant achievements of young researchers in physical chemistry. Dr. Kozuch’s groundbreaking work underscores the importance of interdisciplinary approaches in addressing scientific challenges.