Ahmed Zewail was an Egyptian-American scientist, known as the "father of femtochemistry."

He won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1999 for his pioneering development of a rapid laser technique that allowed scientists to study the action of atoms during chemical reactions, making it possible to observe molecular events on a timescale of femtoseconds.

His work laid the foundation for the understanding of chemical bond dynamics.

Zewail was a professor at the California Institute of Technology and served in many public policy roles.

He was elected as member of the European Academy of Engineering in 2003.