Martin Gruebele
Encyclopedia
Martin Gruebeleis a German born American
biophysicist and computational biologist who is currently James R. Eiszner Professor of Chemistry
, Professor of Physics
, Professor of Biophysics
and Computational Biology
at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
where he is the principal investigator of the 15+ membered Gruebele Group.
He completed his B.S in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley
, advised by Ken Sauer (biophysics), Wilhelm Maier (organic synthesis), Richard J. Saykally
(laser spectroscopy).He did his graduate work at the University of California, Berkeley
in the laboratory of Richard J. Saykally
and subsequently held a postdoctoral position with Ahmed Zewail
at California Institute of Technology
after which he joined the faculty of the University of Illinois in 1992. Dr. Gruebele is also a faculty member of the Beckman Institute and Adjunct Professor of Physics
at Michigan State University
.
ranging from the kinetics
of biological systems and quantum dynamics
of energy flow within molecules to optically assisted scanning tunneling microscopy.A common theme of his research is the implementation of state-of-the-art laser
techniques to interrogate and manipulate complex molecular systems, coupled with quantum or classical simulations leading to better understanding of Protein folding
, Molecular vibration
, and the switching of energy flow in large molecular structures on surfaces.
& Biophysical Society
and a Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
.
MEMBERSHIPS/AWARDS:
. He has a keen interest in cycling
and has professionally competed in various events.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
biophysicist and computational biologist who is currently James R. Eiszner Professor of Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, Professor of Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
, Professor of Biophysics
Biophysics
Biophysics is an interdisciplinary science that uses the methods of physical science to study biological systems. Studies included under the branches of biophysics span all levels of biological organization, from the molecular scale to whole organisms and ecosystems...
and Computational Biology
Computational biology
Computational biology involves the development and application of data-analytical and theoretical methods, mathematical modeling and computational simulation techniques to the study of biological, behavioral, and social systems...
at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
where he is the principal investigator of the 15+ membered Gruebele Group.
Education
He completed his B.S in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
, advised by Ken Sauer (biophysics), Wilhelm Maier (organic synthesis), Richard J. Saykally
Richard J. Saykally
Richard J. Saykally is an American chemist. He is currently a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. He has received numerous awards and accolades for advanced research on the molecular characteristics of water.-Career:...
(laser spectroscopy).He did his graduate work at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in the laboratory of Richard J. Saykally
Richard J. Saykally
Richard J. Saykally is an American chemist. He is currently a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. He has received numerous awards and accolades for advanced research on the molecular characteristics of water.-Career:...
and subsequently held a postdoctoral position with Ahmed Zewail
Ahmed Zewail
Ahmed Hassan Zewail is an Egyptian-American scientist who won the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on femtochemistry. He is the Linus Pauling Chair Professor Chemistry and Professor of Physics at the California Institute of Technology.- Birth and education :Ahmed Zewail was born on...
at California Institute of Technology
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
after which he joined the faculty of the University of Illinois in 1992. Dr. Gruebele is also a faculty member of the Beckman Institute and Adjunct Professor of Physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...
at Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
.
Research
His research is largely concerned with chemical and biological physicsBiological Physics
Biological Physics: Energy, Information, Life is the title of a book by Philip Nelson, published by W. H. Freeman in the 2000s. It is a work on biology with an emphasis on the application of physical principles....
ranging from the kinetics
Kinetics
Kinetics may refer to:In science and medicine:* Kinetics , the study of motion and its causes** Rigid body kinetics, the study of the motion of rigid bodies* Chemical kinetics, the study of chemical reaction rates...
of biological systems and quantum dynamics
Quantum dynamics
In physics, quantum dynamics is the quantum version of classical dynamics. Quantum dynamics deals with the motions, and energy and momentum exchanges of systems whose behavior is governed by the laws of quantum mechanics...
of energy flow within molecules to optically assisted scanning tunneling microscopy.A common theme of his research is the implementation of state-of-the-art laser
Laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
techniques to interrogate and manipulate complex molecular systems, coupled with quantum or classical simulations leading to better understanding of Protein folding
Protein folding
Protein folding is the process by which a protein structure assumes its functional shape or conformation. It is the physical process by which a polypeptide folds into its characteristic and functional three-dimensional structure from random coil....
, Molecular vibration
Molecular vibration
A molecular vibration occurs when atoms in a molecule are in periodic motion while the molecule as a whole has constant translational and rotational motion...
, and the switching of energy flow in large molecular structures on surfaces.
Recent pioneering work
- Tissue-Imaging technique called Nonlinear Interferometric Vibrational Imaging which produces easy-to-read, color-coded images of tissue, outlining clear tumor boundaries, with more than 99 % confidence - in less than five minutes thus leading to much faster biopsy results.
- Fast Relaxation Imaging that combines fluorescence microscopy and fast temperature jumps to study protein dynamics inside the living cells.
- Nanosecond pressure jump technique that led to 100 times faster Protein foldingProtein foldingProtein folding is the process by which a protein structure assumes its functional shape or conformation. It is the physical process by which a polypeptide folds into its characteristic and functional three-dimensional structure from random coil....
and could help guide more accurate computer simulations for how complex proteins fold. - Terahertz Absorption Spectroscopy elucidating for the first time the role of water as a designer fluid that helps proteins change shape.
- Two-state dynamics recorded in glassy Silicon for the first time using high-resolution imaging technology, that confirmed the glass like nature of amorphous silicon until Hydrogen is added.
Awards/Honors
Professor Gruebele has received many national and international awards, including Raymond and Beverly Sackler Prize in the Physical Sciences and Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Prize from von Humboldt Society. He has been awarded A. P. Sloan Fellowship, Camille and Henry Dreyfus Fellowship, and is a Fellow of the American Physical SocietyAmerican Physical Society
The American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
& Biophysical Society
Biophysical Society
The Biophysical Society is an organization consisting of over 9,000 researchers in academia, government, and industry. Based in the USA, its international membership has grown to about 1/3 of the total. Founded in 1957 by Ernest C...
and a Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
.
MEMBERSHIPS/AWARDS:
- Member, American Academy of Arts and SciencesAmerican Academy of Arts and SciencesThe American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
(USA, 2010) - Raymond and Beverly Sackler International Prize (Tel Aviv UniversityTel Aviv UniversityTel Aviv University is a public university located in Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel. With nearly 30,000 students, TAU is Israel's largest university.-History:...
, 2008) - Member, German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (2008)
- James R Eiszner Chair (University of Illinois, 2008)
- Teaching Excellence Award (School of Chemical Sciences, University of Illinois, 2006)
- William H and Janet Lycan Professorship (University of Illinois, 2006)
- Fellow of the Biophysical SocietyBiophysical SocietyThe Biophysical Society is an organization consisting of over 9,000 researchers in academia, government, and industry. Based in the USA, its international membership has grown to about 1/3 of the total. Founded in 1957 by Ernest C...
(Biophysical Society, 2005) - Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Prize (Alexander von Humboldt FoundationAlexander von Humboldt FoundationThe Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is a foundation set-up by the government of the Federal Republic and funded by the German Foreign Office, the Ministry of Education and Research, the Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development and others for the promotion of international co-operation...
, 2005) - Associate of the Center for Advanced Studies (University of Illinois, 2003)
- Fellow of the American Physical Society American Physical SocietyThe American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
(2002) - National Science FoundationNational Science FoundationThe National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
Creativity Extension Award (2002) - Alumni Scholar Professorship (University of Illinois, 2002)
- Coblentz Award (Coblentz SocietyCoblentz SocietyThe Coblentz Society is an American organization promoting and fostering the understanding and variety of applications of all types of molecular or vibrational spectroscopy founded in 1954. It's the oldest such organization in the United States....
, 2000) - University Scholar (University of Illinois, 1998)
- Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award (The Camille and Henry Dreyfus FoundationThe Camille and Henry Dreyfus FoundationThe Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation is a New York City-based foundation founded in 1946 by chemist and investor Camille Dreyfus in honour of his brother, Henry Dreyfus...
, 1998) - Alfred P Sloan Fellow (Sloan Foundation, 1997)
- Teaching Excellence Award (School of Chemical Sciences, University of Illinois, 1995)
- Cottrell Scholar Award (Research Corporation, 1995)
- Fellow at the Center for Advanced Studies (University of Illinois, 1995)
- David and Lucile Packard Fellow (Packard Foundation, 1994)
- National Young Investigator Award (NSF, 1994)
- List of Teachers Ranked Excellent by their Students (University of Illinois, 1993)
- O Beckman Award (University of Illinois Research Board, 1992)
- Dreyfus New Faculty Award (Dreyfus Foundation, 1992)
- Dow Chemical Graduate Fellow, (Dow Chemical, 1987-1988)
- IBM Predoctoral Fellow, (IBMIBMInternational Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
, 1986-1987) - University Fellow (University of California, Berkeley, 1984-1986)
- Outstanding Teacher Award (University of California, Berkeley Department of Chemistry, 1985)
- University Certificate of Distinction (University of California, Berkeley, 1984)
- Department Citation for Highest Honors (University of California, Berkeley, 1984)
Personal
Dr. Gruebele is married to Nancy Makriwho is also a Professor of Chemistry at University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
. He has a keen interest in cycling
Cycling
Cycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, or for sport. Persons engaged in cycling are cyclists or bicyclists...
and has professionally competed in various events.