Sustainability and Energy Fellow
2026 Cohort
PhD program: Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California
Fellowship mentors: Chad A. Mirkin, PhD, and Mercouri Kanatzidis, PhD, Department of Chemistry, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences
Jinwon Oh received his PhD in materials science and engineering from Stanford University. His doctoral research focused on engineering colloidal nanocrystals to understand structure-property relationships and translate these insights into industrial catalytic systems. His work has been recognized with several honors, including the Materials Research Society Graduate Student Gold Award, the International Precious Metals Institute Bright Futures Award, and selection as a 2024 Materials Science and Engineering Rising Star.
At Northwestern University, he will develop catalytic materials for emerging energy and environmental technologies. His research will address stability challenges in current catalytic systems that hinder their real-world implementation. In particular, he will develop catalysts that convert CO2 into valuable chemicals using renewable electricity. This approach could provide a more sustainable alternative to conventional energy-intensive chemical processes that generate significant greenhouse gas emissions. Using high-throughput synthesis and characterization approaches, he will identify key design principles to improve catalyst stability and accelerate the discovery of durable catalytic materials for practical application.