Omar Yaghi (Jordanian, Saudi Arabian, American Chemist) Age, Biogra.

Quick Info

Profession	Chemist
Nationality	Jordanian, Saudi Arabian, American
Date of Birth	09/02/1965
Age	61 years
Birthplace	Amman, Jordan

Latest News about Omar Yaghi

08/10/2025

Omar M. Yaghi was awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, shared with Richard Robson and Susumu Kitagawa, for their pioneering work in developing metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). These porous materials, constructed from metal ions and organic linkers, enable applications such as harvesting water from desert air, capturing carbon dioxide, storing toxic gases, and catalyzing chemical reactions. The award recognizes Yaghi's advancements in creating flexible, stable MOFs with customizable cavities for specific substance capture.

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Bio/Wiki

Real Name	Omar Mwannes Yaghi
Other Name	Omar M. Yaghi
Known For	Pioneering reticular chemistry and developing metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks (COFs), and zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs); 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Physical Stats & More

Height	5' 6" (168 cm)
Eye Color	Light Brown
Hair Color	Salt and Pepper (partial bald)

Educational Qualification(s)

Degrees	Bachelor of Science in Chemistry (1985) from University of Illinois Doctor of Philosophy (1990) from University of Illinois Bachelor of Science in Chemistry (1985) from State University of New York at Albany Doctor of Philosophy in Inorganic Chemistry (1990) from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Colleges/Universities	Hudson Valley Community College, New York State University of New York, Albany University of Illinois, Illinois Harvard University, Massachusetts

Personal Life

Religion	Islam

Family

Father	Butcher Shop Owner
Siblings	Eight siblings

Career

Summary	Omar Yaghi is a prominent chemist, recognized for his pioneering work in reticular chemistry and the development of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks (COFs), and zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs). His career began as an assistant professor at Arizona State University (1992-1998), followed by positions at the University of Michigan (1999-2006), University of California, Los Angeles (2006-2011), and since 2012 at the University of California, Berkeley as the James and Neeltje Tretter Chair Professor of Chemistry. He is Co-Director of the Kavli Energy NanoSciences Institute at UC Berkeley and co-director of the California Research Alliance by BASF. Yaghi has received numerous awards including the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry (shared with Richard Robson and Susumu Kitagawa), the 2017 Albert Einstein World Award of Science, and the 2015 King Faisal Prize in Science. From 2000-2010, he was listed among the two most highly cited chemists worldwide. His work on MOFs has applications in carbon capture, water harvesting from desert air, toxic gas storage, and chemical catalysis.
Key Milestones	1995: Successfully crystallized metal-organic structures with strong bonds between metal ions and charged organic linkers, establishing the foundation for metal-organic frameworks 1998: Introduced metal-carboxylate clusters as secondary building units (SBUs), enabling robust frameworks with permanent porosity 1999: Developed MOF-5, achieving ultra-high porosity with surface area of 6,500 m²/g, breaking the world record for porosity 2005: Published seminal paper on covalent organic frameworks (COFs), reporting the first series of 2D COFs

Summary

Omar Yaghi is a prominent chemist, recognized for his pioneering work in reticular chemistry and the development of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent organic frameworks (COFs), and zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs). His career began as an assistant professor at Arizona State University (1992-1998), followed by positions at the University of Michigan (1999-2006), University of California, Los Angeles (2006-2011), and since 2012 at the University of California, Berkeley as the James and Neeltje Tretter Chair Professor of Chemistry. He is Co-Director of the Kavli Energy NanoSciences Institute at UC Berkeley and co-director of the California Research Alliance by BASF. Yaghi has received numerous awards including the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry (shared with Richard Robson and Susumu Kitagawa), the 2017 Albert Einstein World Award of Science, and the 2015 King Faisal Prize in Science. From 2000-2010, he was listed among the two most highly cited chemists worldwide. His work on MOFs has applications in carbon capture, water harvesting from desert air, toxic gas storage, and chemical catalysis.

Key Milestones

1995: Successfully crystallized metal-organic structures with strong bonds between metal ions and charged organic linkers, establishing the foundation for metal-organic frameworks
1998: Introduced metal-carboxylate clusters as secondary building units (SBUs), enabling robust frameworks with permanent porosity
1999: Developed MOF-5, achieving ultra-high porosity with surface area of 6,500 m²/g, breaking the world record for porosity
2005: Published seminal paper on covalent organic frameworks (COFs), reporting the first series of 2D COFs

Social Media

LinkedIn	https://www.linkedin.com/in/omar-yaghi-66ab724/

Some Lesser Known Facts

1. Omar Yaghi was born into a Palestinian refugee family and experienced a humble upbringing with limited resources.
2. He moved to the U.S. alone at the age of 15 to pursue his education despite knowing little English.
3. Yaghi proposed the concept of reticular chemistry, which was initially viewed with skepticism by the scientific community.
4. He has been rated as one of the world’s most-cited chemists, making significant contributions to the field of chemistry throughout his career.
5. Yaghi founded two startups focused on carbon capture and water harvesting technologies, highlighting his commitment to environmental science.
6. Yaghi proposed the concept of reticular chemistry, which he defines as stitching molecular building blocks into crystalline, extended structures by strong bonds, initially viewed with skepticism by the scientific community.
7. He has been rated as one of the world's most-cited chemists, selected as the second most cited chemist in the world according to the King Faisal Prize.
8. Yaghi founded startups focused on carbon capture and water harvesting technologies, highlighting his commitment to environmental science and practical applications of his research.

Omar Yaghi Chemist Jordanian, Saudi Arabian, American Amman, Jordan