Research by Professor Maissam Barkeshli and colleagues has been selected by the International Congress of Basic Science (ICBS) as a recipient of the 2026 Frontiers of Science Award in Condensed Matter Physics. The paper cited was Symmetry fractionalization, defects, and gauging of topological phases by Barkeshli, Parsa Bonderson, Meng Cheng and Zhenghan Wang.Maissam Barkeshli

The Frontiers of Science Award, inaugurated in 2023 under the auspices of the ICBS, honors recent papers recognized for a major breakthrough in their respective fields and includes a nomination process and review by a panel of experts.

Awards will be presented at the International Congress of Basic Science in Beijing on August 9, 2026. 

Barkeshli has also received a Sloan Fellowship and an NSF Career Award, and was recently selected for a Simons Collaboration.