Dr. Axel D. Becke

Axel Becke is a scientific leader noted for his work in the application of Density Functional Theory (DFT) to molecules. His computational technique (NUMOL) achieved a level of computational precision unmatched by others and it remains a unique and powerful DFT benchmarking tool. His discrete integration procedure has been adopted in whole or in part by a large number of software developers/vendors who have modified conventional programmes to accommodate DFT. For his work, Dr. Becke has received a number of awards including the Medal of the International Academy of Quantum Molecular Science, the Noranda Lecture Award of the Canadian Society for Chemistry, the Queenès University Prize for Excellence in Research, and the Schroedinger Medal of the World Association of Theoretically Oriented Chemists. He receives an impressively large number of citations for his publications. However, the real impact of his work is evident in the numerous areas where chemists and physicists have used his methodologies to compute molecular properties of a vast number of complex molecular systems to a degree of accuracy which only a few years ago would have been unthinkable. Research colleagues describe his research contributions as ‘marvelous examples' of theoretical chemistry at its best.