Why Spectroscopists Should Attend the ACS Fall 2026 Conference

This August, Chicago will once again become the center of the chemistry world. The American Chemical Society (ACS) Fall Meeting will take place in the Windy City from August 23 to 27, 2026.^1–3 Currently, the conference program consists of thousands of scientific presentations, professional development courses, and the chance to discover the latest technological innovations. The theme of this year's meeting is Chemists Making History, a fitting banner as ACS celebrates 150 years of chemistry and community under the banner #ACS150.^1–3

The 2026 ACS Fall meeting will be held at the McCormick Place Convention Center, which is located at 700 14th Street in Chicago.⁴ By registering for this conference, attendees will have the chance to experience all keynotes, technical sessions, the Expo, networking events, and the Career Fair. The conference registration also includes full access to the Digital Meeting for those who can't attend in person. It is expected that over 10,000 people attend this meeting.^1,3

What does the Keynote Program include?

There are four key speakers that are lined up to speak at ACS Fall 2026. These speakers include Nobel Laureates Prof. Carolyn Bertozzi (2022, bioorthogonal chemistry), Prof. Stefan Hell (2014, super-resolution fluorescence microscopy), Prof. Jack W. Szostak (2009, origins of genetic information), and Prof. Stanley Whittingham (2019, lithium battery chemistry) for a special morning symposium celebrating 150 years of the ACS.⁵

Why should spectroscopists attend ACS Fall 2026?

Spectroscopists will find upon perusal of the ACS Fall 2026 Technical Program that there are talks, sessions, and symposiums dedicated to discussing spectroscopic techniques and how they are being applied in a variety of application areas. For example, the Division of Analytical Chemistry is hosting an "Advances in Spectroscopy" symposium featuring selected presentations on the latest advances across all fields of spectroscopy for chemical analysis.⁶

Beyond that dedicated session, spectroscopy threads throughout the broader technical program. The Division of Physical Chemistry is hosting a symposium on laser techniques applied to dynamic processes in energy and quantum materials, spanning time-resolved optical, terahertz (THz), X-ray, and multidimensional spectroscopic modalities, with a focus on photoinduced energy and charge transport, structural rearrangements, and quantum coherence. A separate symposium will bring together theorists and experimentalists to discuss vibrational, optical, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and other spectroscopic techniques as tools for investigating molecular interactions and dynamics, connecting spectroscopy with machine learning, quantum-classical statistical mechanical theory, and high-performance computing.⁷

Why should analytical chemists attend ACS Fall 2026?

Like the spectroscopists, analytical chemists have a lot of program offerings that would appeal to them and their research. There are several symposia that is geared towards them specifically, with topics on advances in separations, advances in mass spectrometry (MS), and a tribute to Alan Marshall celebrating his groundbreaking development of Fourier transform mass spectrometry (FTMS), which has transformed the analysis of complex mixtures and biomolecules.⁶ There is also a symposium honoring J. Michael Ramsey, recipient of the ACS Award in Analytical Chemistry, as well as programming explicitly designed for the next generation: the SIGNALS symposium invites early-career and newly independent principal investigators to share innovative methodologies, emerging applications, and creative problem-solving approaches shaping the future of the field.⁶

The meeting also hosts a session on chemistry and art conservation, which is an acknowledgment of Chicago’s art community and the fact that the city is home to one of the largest art museums in the United States.

Can attendees attend the conference virtually?

The short answer is yes. Those unable to attend in person can access select curated live sessions, global virtual symposia, division technical sessions, and professional development sessions through the Digital Meeting. ACS is also offering special registration discounts to members residing in countries with emerging economies, aiming to expand access to the global scientific community.

References

1. American Chemical Society, ACS Fall 2026. American Chemical Society, 2026. https://www.acs.org/events/fall.html (accessed June 24, 2026).
2. Cellulose and Renewable Materials, 2026 American Chemical Society Fall Meeting. Cellulose and Renewable Materials, 2026. https://acscell.org/event/testing-2/ (accessed June 24, 2026).
3. American Chemical Society, Future Meetings & Expositions. American Chemical Society, 2026. https://www.acs.org/events/acs-meetings/future-meetings.html (accessed June 24, 2026).
4. MilliporeSigma, ACS Fall 2026. MilliporeSigma, 2026. https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/US/en/collections/events/acs-fall (accessed June 24, 2026).
5. American Chemical Society, Keynote Events. American Chemical Society, 2026. https://www.acs.org/events/fall/program/keynote-events.html (accessed June 24, 2026).
6. American Chemical Society, 2026 Fall National ACS Meeting. American Chemical Society, 2026. https://acsanalytical.org/2026-fall-national-acs-meeting/ (accessed June 24, 2026).
7. Physical Chemistry ACS Technical Division, ACS Fall 2026. Physical Chemistry ACS Technical Division, 2026. https://phys-acs.org/event/acs-fall-2026/ (accessed June 24, 2026).