The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2000

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has awarded
the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2000 jointly to
Alan J. Heeger, Alan G. MacDiarmid and Hideki Shirakawa “for the discovery and development of conductive polymers”.

Alan Heeger, Alan MacDiarmid and Hideki Shirakawa have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for showing how plastic can be made to conduct electric current. This surprising discovery has radically altered our view of plastic as a material. Conductive polymers today constitute a growing research field of great significance to chemists and physicists alike.

To cite this section
MLA style: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2000. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach 2025. Sat. 6 Dec 2025. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/2000/8961-the-nobel-prize-in-chemistry-2000/>

Go to the top of the page

Streams during Nobel Week

Coming up

Watch the 2025 Nobel Prize lectures, Nobel Week Dialogue, the prize award ceremonies in Oslo and Stockholm and Nobel Peace Prize Forum here at nobelprize.org.

Explore prizes and laureates

Look for popular awards and laureates in different fields, and discover the history of the Nobel Prize.