Warren Warren

Warren S. Warren is the James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at Duke University, a role he assumed in 2006, and has been Professor of Chemistry since 2005. He also serves as Professor of Radiology since 2005, Professor of Physics since 2015, and Member of the Duke Cancer Institute since 2013. Warren chaired the Department of Physics starting September 1, 2015. Prior to Duke, he held a faculty position at Princeton University from 1982 to 2005. His academic background includes a Ph.D. in 1980 and M.S. in 1979 from the University of California, Berkeley, as well as an A.B. from Harvard University.

In Chemistry, Warren's research specializes in the design and application of novel pulsed techniques employing controlled radiation fields to manipulate dynamics in chemical physics. This work features ultrafast laser spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance with an integrated approach of theory, computation, and experiment, often collaborating on medical applications. Notable efforts encompass tailored laser pulses for non-invasive skin mole analysis to assess cancer risk, 3D hyperspectral imaging of Renaissance paintings, protected nuclear spin states enabling high-sensitivity biomolecular MRI for early cancer detection, drug development, and metabolic studies, as well as macroscopic coherence detection for temperature imaging in hyperthermic cancer therapy and non-radiative obesity diagnosis. He directs the Center for Molecular and Biomolecular Imaging and serves as deputy editor of Science Advances. Key publications include co-authoring the book The Physical Basis of Chemistry (2015) and recent articles such as "Exchange-selective excitation pulses for dynamic magnetic resonance" in Science Advances (2025), "Efficient 15N hyperpolarization of [15N3]metronidazole antibiotic via spin-relayed pulsed SABRE-SHEATH" in Journal of Magnetic Resonance Open (2025), and "Investigation of 15N-SABRE hyperpolarization at high pressures and in supercritical fluids" in Journal of Magnetic Resonance (2025). Warren has earned prestigious honors including the E. Bright Wilson Award in Spectroscopy (2023, American Chemical Society), Raymond Andrew Prize (2022, International Ampere Society), Gunther Laukien Prize (2020, International Experimental NMR Conference), Liversidge Medal (2017, Royal Society of Chemistry), C.E.K. Mees Medal (2015, Optica), Herbert P. Broida Prize (2011, American Physical Society), and Nobel Laureate Signature Award (1982, American Chemical Society), along with fellowships from AAAS, APS, Optica, SPIE, and others.

Professional Email: warren.warren@duke.edu