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Research Interests

Our group uses theory and computation to learn the fundamental physical principles that govern assembly and dynamic pattern formation in biology and nanoscale materials science. Specific molecular interactions have evolved over millions of years to drive the formation of highly ordered large-scale structures in biology, but are there general features of these interactions that ensure robust assembly?

Because viruses and many cellular structures form by assembly, learning to control assembly could lead to novel disease treatments, better drug delivery vehicles, and more advanced nano structured materials. Studying assembly is challenging, however, because structures can be orders of magnitude larger than individual components.

Experiments that simultaneously monitor individual components and overall assembly are beginning to span these scales. We are working to develop a hierarchy of simulation and theoretical techniques that complement these experiments. Current research can be split into two broad areas:

• Understanding biological and biomimetic assembly processes
• High-resolution modeling of enzyme conformational transitions and other biomolecular motions