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Charles Mann Award for Applied Raman Spectroscopy
The Charles Mann Award is presented to an individual who has demonstrated advancement(s) in the field of applied Raman spectroscopy, presented at the FACSS SciX conference; and/or demonstrated dedication to the advancement of the Raman spectroscopy program at the FACSS SciX conference and/or the ASTM Raman subcommittee. The Charles Mann award for Applied Raman Spectroscopy was instituted by FACSS in 2002 following the untimely death of Professor Charles (Charlie) Mann. Professor Mann was a well-known and long-standing member of the faculty of Florida State University (FSU). Professor Mann and his faculty colleague, Professor Tom Vickers, contributed significantly to the development of analytical Raman spectroscopy via publications, participation at numerous meetings including the annual FACSS meeting, and participation in the ASTM sub-committee on Raman spectroscopy E13.08. Professor Mann’s research areas covered from the fundamental including data analysis (chemometrics and databases), quantitative Raman, and instrumental understanding to the applied, polymers, inorganics, etc.
2025 Recipient
Marc Porter
Professor Porter is a Distinguished Professor in Chemical Engineering, with adjunct appointments in Chemistry, at the University of Utah. Research in Porter’s laboratory spans fundamental issues in the design, characterization and applications of chemical, physical, and biological phenomena at liquid-solid interfaces (e.g., self-assembled monolayers, scanning probe microscopy, electrochemistry, infrared and Raman spectroscopy, plasmonics, and spintronics). His laboratory is perhaps best known for fundamental investigations on “thiols on gold” and on applications of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERs) as a read-out tool in multiplexed human and animal health care testing.
He holds numerous patents and has helped co-found several companies, including Advanced Analytical Technologies, Inc., which was acquired by Agilent in 2018. His collaborative development of the Ramanprobes™ System, a new immunoassay platform for detecting and labeling antigens, won an R&D 100 Award in 2003. He also led a team of scientists and engineers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in designing and testing innovative instrumentation for monitoring water quality on the International Space Station (ISS). After successfully completing a series of validation tests on NASA’s KC-135 microgravity flight simulator (i.e., the Vomit Comet), the instrument was delivered by the Space Shuttle to ISS in 2009, becoming a flight operation soon thereafter.
Professor Bhavya Sharma, Charles Mann Award Committee Chair, said, “We are pleased to recognize Professor Marc Porter as the 2025 Charles Mann Awardee. He is one of the world’s leading Raman spectroscopists and an outstanding analytical chemist with an extensive research career, publishing over 250 papers in refereed journals and presenting more than 430 invited lectures at scientific meetings, universities, and industrial labs. Marc has made significant breakthroughs in the development of new immunoassays based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), development and understanding of metal and plasmonic surfaces, and utilizing both electrochemistry and spectroscopy to understand materials and surface chemistry on metal surfaces.”
NOMINATIONS
If you'd like to nominate someone for the Charles Mann Award, please review the nomination information for instructions. Nominations for the 2026 Charles Mann Award are being accepted through September 29, 2025.
Past Recipients
2024 Nick Stone
2023 Juergen Popp
2022 Igor Lednev
2021 Roy Goodacre
2020 Yukihiro Ozaki
2019 Karen Faulds
2018 Andrew Whitley
2017 Duncan Graham
2016 Brian Marquardt
2015 Sanford A. Asher
2014 Richard P. Van Duyne
2013 Volker Deckert
2012 Dr. Don Pivonka
2011 Professor Howell G.M. Edwards
2010 Professor Richard L. McCreery
2009 Professor Pavel Matousek
2008 Dr. Ian R. Lewis
2007 Dr. Neil Everall
2006 Professor Michael Morris
2005 Dr. D. Bruce Chase
2004 Dr. Michael M. Carrabba
2003 Dr. Michael J. Pelletier
2002 Dr. Fran Adar