Metrohm Spectro is thrilled to announce that Dr. Jun Zhao has been named the 2024 Williams-Wright Award recipient from the Coblentz Society. The Society presents the Williams-Wright Award annually to a spectroscopist who has made significant contributions to vibrational spectroscopy while working in industry. This year’s award will be presented at the Pittsburg conference (Pittcon) in San Diego, CA.

Jun received this award for his significant accomplishments that advanced Raman spectroscopy instrumentation and methods. Throughout his career he has led teams that have developed new products and technologies that are deployed in countless academia, industrial, and governmental facilities. Dr. Zhao’s work helped transform Raman spectroscopy from fundamental research techniques to a more accessible analytical tool.

Jun’s early work at Chromex, Inc., which was acquired by Bruker in 2004, included the co-invention, together with Dr. Fritz Allen, of a Raman shift calibration method to extract accurate data from lower-cost, frequency un-stabilized lasers. He also co-developed a shifted-excitation fluorescence removal method with Drs. Allen and Carrabba allowing for the analysis of challenging samples.

One of Jun’s most impactful contributions was the development of a compact, microscope-mountable confocal Raman spectrometer. This design created a new class of instruments, which became the most popular configuration of Raman confocal microscope and opened Raman microscopy up to the fields of forensics, materials science and pharmaceuticals.

Jun joined B&W Tek in 2015, which later became Metrohm Spectro, where he now serves as the Director of Engineering. He continues to develop instrumentation and data analysis algorithms for the company’s laboratory and handheld Raman products. Products he helped develop were recognized by the All-Star Innovators Award from Pharmaceutical Magazine and the Pittcon Today Excellence Gold Award.