Peter B. Armentrout

Celebrated as representing "the perfect combination of academic excellence, life-changing research, and educational leadership" Peter Armentrout is considered one of the world's foremost researchers in physical chemistry. But while his study of the energies with which chemicals bond has been called gestalt-like" and described as "art and science in its highest form," Armentrout's proudest moments involve working with students. "That's one of the reasons why the Rosenblatt Prize is such a great honor. It is more than a recognition of research and administrative contributions - it is awarded for great teaching." Armentrout has received many teaching awards for his work with both undergraduate and graduate students and most recently was invited to Japan's Kobe University to deliver the Morino Lecture.

Called Mr. Thermochemistry by his colleagues, Dr. Armentrout developed instrumentation and methods of analyzing data that continue to yield critical information on a wide variety of species. His work directly influences catalytic and environmental discoveries, leading to fundamental information on biological processes central to the understanding of disease. A distinguished professor of chemistry and Cannon Fellow, Amentrout has nearly 400 publications to his credit and is routinely among the top cited chemists in all fields. In 2009, his research garnered him the highest honor in his field - the American Chemical Society's Field and Franklin Award for Outstanding Achievements in Mass Spectrometry.

An avid runner, hiker, and backpacker, Armentrout first discovered his interest in ions as an undergraduate student at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. After graduating, he bicycled to California to earn his Ph.D. at Caltech, and accepted a position as Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley before coming to the University of Utah as Associate Professor of Chemistry. Over his career, he has worked with 110 students, including 31 Ph.D. students, and served as Department Chair at the University of Utah. He has had continuous funding from the National Science Foundation since 1985, and currently has two single investigator grants from the NSF and Department of Energy.

Modest about his own accomplishments, Dr. Armentrout is quick to praise his department and its cadre of professors. "Because of the contributions of all of our faculty," explains Armentrout, "students can come to the University of Utah's Chemistry Department, secure in the knowledge that they will get not only a world class education in chemistry, but also the opportunity for learning with world-class faculty widely recognized for their research."