In March, 2010, the American Chemical Society awarded the Priestley Medal to Richard N. Zare ‘for his numerous contributions to chemistry,” the American Chemical Society’s most prestigious award.

Zare, a Stanford University Chemist, developed a laser-induced fluorescence method that is widely used in chemistry laboratories. Laser-induced fluorescence is the process of studying molecules by exciting them with a laser and then measuring the light they emit. Zare’s work has led to a better understanding of chemical reactions at the molecular level, such as solving problems in chemical analysis.