Professor Juan-Pablo Correa-Baena receives Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers

Jan 14, 2025

IMOD faculty member recognized for solar energy materials research with U.S. government’s highest honor for early-career engineers

On January 14, 2025, Professor Juan-Pablo Correa-Baena received a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) from President Joe Biden. Correa-Baena, an Associate Professor of Materials Science & Engineering (MSE) and the Goizueta Junior Faculty Chair at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), is a faculty member of the Center for Integration of Modern Optoelectronic Materials on Demand (IMOD), a National Science Foundation (NSF) Science & Technology Center (STC).

The PECASE is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government upon early-career engineers and scientists, specifically for each recipient’s “exceptional potential for leadership.” As one of 400 honorees this year, Correa-Baena was recognized for his research on solar energy materials with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Correa-Baena has been a Web of Science Group Highly Cited Researcher since 2019, and was named a leading early career researcher in materials science by Nature Indexin 2019. He received the prestigious Sloan Research Fellowship in 2024.

“When I became a researcher, I wanted to work on something that would benefit society, informed by chemistry, physics, and involved materials discovery,” said Correa-Baena. “My career goal has always been to execute high-quality research, and receiving a PECASE is a testament to the work our lab is doing, my student and faculty collaborators, and simply being in the right place at the right time.”

Within IMOD, Correa-Baena and his group contribute to the Precision Synthesis (RT-1) and Scalable Quantum Photonics (RT-3) research thrusts, and he recently assumed a new role as IMOD’s Associate Director of Communications.

At Georgia Tech, Correa-Baena co-directs the Center for Organic Photonics and Electronics (COPE) within its Institute of Matter and Systems and Strategic Energy Institute. His research group focuses on understanding and controlling crystallographic structure and its effects on electronic dynamics at the nanoscale of low-cost semiconductors for optoelectronic applications. His lab emphasizes low-cost and high throughput deposition techniques, as well as advanced characterization methods that include synchrotron-based mapping and imaging approaches with nanoscale resolution.
“To have an impactful career in research, it’s key to be passionate about what you’re doing — I love the discovery of new phenomena and materials as well as the process of having a hypothesis and testing it,” said Correa-Baena. “More often than not, the hypotheses are incorrect, but it is always an opportunity to learn and grow. Passion is required to have the drive to solve complex problems, a process that can take years and sometimes decades. Don’t be discouraged by failure.”

The PECASE was established by President Clinton in 1996. It honors individuals for their contributions to science and technology and promotes awareness of STEM careers. The PECASE also supports the missions of participating agencies — including the DOE — and strengthens the link between research and societal impact.