JCP Honors Emerging Investigators with Best Paper Awards in Theory and Experiment

Caltech's Prof. Scott Cushing and National Taiwan University's Prof. Liang-Yan Hsu are this year's award recipients

MELVILLE, N.Y., Sept. 2, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- AIP Publishing and the Journal of Chemical Physics are honored to announce the recipients of the 2024 Journal of Chemical Physics Best Paper Awards by Emerging Investigators, recognizing outstanding contributions in both theoretical and experimental research. This year's honorees are Dr. Liang-Yan Hsu of Academia Sinica, Taiwan, and Prof. Scott Cushing of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

The papers were picked from a pool of the 2024 Journal of Chemical Physics (JCP) Emerging Investigators Special Collection, by a committee of Editorial Advisory Board Members. Inclusion in the special collection is, in itself, a recognition of a given paper's excellence, as the collection holds a higher standard for acceptance.

Profs. Cushing and Hsu will each receive a $2,000 honorarium and be invited to write a perspective article for JCP.

Submissions for the 2025 JCP Emerging Investigators Special Collection are now open. To qualify, the principal investigator must be within 10 years of the graduation date for their advanced degree.

Advancing Theory: Liang-Yan Hsu

Dr. Hsu was recognized for his paper "Generalized Born–Huang expansion under macroscopic quantum electrodynamics framework," published in JCP on April 10, 2024. The study proposes a generalized formulation that extends the conventional separation of electronic and nuclear motion to incorporate photonic degrees of freedom within the framework of macroscopic quantum electrodynamics (QED). This breakthrough offers a rigorous quantum mechanical description of molecular systems embedded in structured electromagnetic environments, such as optical cavities and plasmonic nanostructures, while accounting for an infinite number of photonic modes.

"It is a great honor to receive the JCP Best Theory Paper Award by an Emerging Investigator," said Dr. Hsu. "The Journal of Chemical Physics has long been a cornerstone in the field of theoretical chemistry, publishing landmark studies that have shaped our understanding of molecular science. To have this work recognized by the journal and its community is deeply meaningful and a strong encouragement for my future research."

Hsu's research focuses on theoretical chemical physics and quantum electrodynamics, particularly the study of light–matter interactions in complex environments. His award-winning paper introduces a theoretical framework that could serve as the foundation for future investigations into quantum electrodynamic effects in molecular systems.

Felipe Herrera, professor at Universidad de Santiago de Chile and a member of the JCP–DCP selection committee, highlighted the paper's impact:

"Most theoretical articles studying potential modifications of chemical properties and processes capture molecular complexity in great detail but oversimplify the electromagnetic field. In contrast, Dr. Hsu's article combines macroscopic quantum electrodynamics with conventional theory of non-adiabatic electron–nuclear dynamics, providing a complete ab initio description of molecular dynamics in quantized electromagnetic fields that is consistent with Maxwell's equations in condensed phase. This is a landmark step forward."

Dr. Hsu traces his passion for theoretical chemistry back to his high school years, inspired by the possibility of uniting chemistry with physics and mathematics. He earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in chemistry from National Taiwan University, followed by a Ph.D. in chemistry from Princeton University under Prof. Herschel Rabitz. He then pursued postdoctoral research at Northwestern University with Prof. George C. Schatz before joining Academia Sinica.

Since his first publication in JCP in 2010, Dr. Hsu has considered the journal a central platform for advancing molecular science. Receiving the Best Theory Paper Award, he noted, is both "a meaningful milestone and a motivation to keep working toward deeper theoretical understanding."

Dr. Hsu plans to further develop the theoretical foundations of QED chemistry by incorporating non-adiabatic effects, dissipation, and many-body correlations into a unified macroscopic QED framework. He also aims to connect theoretical advances to experimental observables and contribute to software tools that will broaden access to these concepts. Ultimately, his goal is to uncover new physical phenomena and inspire cross-disciplinary exploration of molecular behavior in photonic environments.

Pioneering Experiment: Scott Cushing

Prof. Cushing was recognized for his work "Experimental upper bounds for resonance-enhanced entangled two-photon absorption cross section of indocyanine green," published in JCP on March 6, 2024. The study represents a milestone in entangled photon spectroscopy, offering carefully measured upper limits for resonance-enhanced two-photon absorption processes in a dye molecule widely used for imaging.

In this work, Cushing and his team investigated whether entangled photon pairs could enhance two-photon absorption through a real intermediate state, as compared to classical two-photon processes. By performing both spectral and temporal measurements, the group established that no enhancement exists above a limit of 6(±2) × 10−23 cm²—well below single-photon processes.

"Prof. Cushing and coworkers report a careful measurement of the upper bound for resonance-enhanced two-photon absorption cross section using entangled photon pairs," said JCP Editor-in-Chief Dr. Tim Lian. "This work is timely because of the intense current interest in using quantum light for ultrasensitive detections, with potential applications in bioimaging. The selection committee believes this paper represents an important contribution to the field, providing methodology and analysis of great value to the community."

Cushing's research focuses on creating new scientific instrumentation that translates quantum phenomena into practical devices. His lab works at the intersection of physics, chemistry, and materials science, developing tools to explore entangled photon interactions and applying them to spectroscopy and microscopy.

"The award not only means a lot to me and is representative of our advances in entangled photon spectroscopy," said Cushing, "but it especially highlights the work of several excellent graduate students who were pioneers both in my lab and the field at large."

Cushing earned both his B.S. and Ph.D. in Physics from West Virginia University, working with Alan Bristow and Nianqiang (Nick) Wu. He then completed postdoctoral research with Steve Leone at UC Berkeley before joining Caltech's faculty in 2018. His multidisciplinary career spans chemistry, materials science, and physics.

Cushing's future research aims to use entanglement to replicate ultrafast spectroscopy in the single-photon limit. His group is exploring how molecules and materials evolve when excited by just a single electron–hole pair or vibrational mode, a frontier with both fundamental and practical significance.

At the same time, his lab is developing nanophotonic entangled photon sources to miniaturize time-resolved fluorescence and pump–probe spectrometers. "The field excites me because it is advancing both practical and fundamental aspects of spectroscopy simultaneously," Cushing said.

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