Stony Brook University Professor Simon Birrer Recipient of Department of Energy Early Career Research Program Award

STONY BROOK, NY-January 9, 2026-The State University of New York at Stony Brook (Stony Brook University) Department of Physics and Astronomy in the College of Arts and Sciences Assistant Professor Simon Birrer has been awarded a U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) Early Career Research Program Award for $875,000. This DoE award was established to support outstanding early career scientists at universities, national laboratories and office of science user facilities.

Professor Birrer's proposal was selected for his research entitled, "Probing Dark Energy with Strong Gravitational Lensing in the Era of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory," to study the expansion history of the universe in partnership with the newly commissioned National Science Foundation (NSF) DoE Vera C. Rubin Observatory. This program award will fund this research for five years.

Professor Birrer is studying the phenomena of strong gravitational lensing, caused when light is deflected due to gravity such that multiple images of the same source appear. The Rubin Observatory is looking to discover tens of thousands of such strong lensing systems, a number more than an order of magnitude larger than the currently known systems. This grant strengthens the leadership of Birrer's group in an emerging field to tackle the nature of dark energy and dark matter.

To be eligible for this program award, researchers must be untenured, tenure-track assistant or associate professors at a U.S. academic institution or a full-time employee at a DOE national laboratory or office of science user facility who is within 10 years of having earned their doctorate degree. Awards to an institution of higher education will be approximately $875,000 over five years.

"At this time of continuing uncertainties and cuts in federal funding, it is exceptionally heart-warming to hear Simon is receiving a DoE Early Career Award, which is a defining moment of any junior faculty's career as it represents highly selective recognition of not only the recipient's accomplishments but also future potential," said Chang Kee Jung, distinguished professor and chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy. "Simon's research is in the exciting and growing field of astronomy that has the great potential for major discoveries with the newly constructed state-of-art observatory. He is dedicated to undergraduate education and early research involvements. The Department of Physics and Astronomy is lucky to have Simon as well as our other fantastic junior faculty members."

"I am grateful for the support by the Department of Energy and am excited to be able to support my group to work with the newly commissioned NSF-DoE Vera C. Rubin Observatory," said Professor Birrer. "I hope that our efforts at Stony Brook contribute to gaining insights into our understanding of the Universe."

Professor Birrer joined Stony Brook University in January 2023. Previously, Birrer served as a Kavli Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University and a Postdoctoral Scholar at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Birrer received his PhD, Masters and Bachelor degrees in Physics from ETH Zurich.

U.S. News & World Report recently announced that the Stony Brook University Department of Physics and Astronomy was ranked #39 globally and #21 nationally.

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About the State University of New York at Stony Brook (Stony Brook University)

The State University of New York at Stony Brook is New York's flagship university and No. 1 public university. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. With more than 27,000 students, more than 3,000 faculty members, more than 225,000 alumni, a premier academic healthcare system and 18 NCAA Division I athletic programs, Stony Brook is a research-intensive distinguished center of innovation dedicated to addressing the world's biggest challenges. The university embraces its mission to provide comprehensive undergraduate, graduate and professional education of the highest quality, and is ranked as the #59 overall university and #26 among public universities in the nation by U.S. News & World Report's Best Colleges listing. Fostering a commitment to academic research and intellectual endeavors, Stony Brook's membership in the Association of American Universities (AAU) places it among the top 71 research institutions in North America. The university's distinguished faculty have earned esteemed awards such as the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Indianapolis Prize for animal conservation, Abel Prize, Fields Medal and Breakthrough Prizes in Mathematics and Physics. Stony Brook has the responsibility of co-managing Brookhaven National Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy - one of only eight universities with a role in running a national laboratory. In 2023, Stony Brook was named the anchor institution for The New York Climate Exchange on Governors Island in New York City. Providing economic growth for neighboring communities and the wider geographic region, the university totals an impressive $8.93 billion in increased economic output on Long Island. Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/stonybrooku and X@stonybrooku.