＜Field of Specialization＞

The de Vries lab combines a number of advanced physical chemistry techniques for a novel approach to the study of individual molecules. This leads to a combination of physical and analytical chemistry by employing laser induced desorption of molecules from surfaces, photoionization, multiphoton spectroscopy, picosecond spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. Included are studies of complex molecules, isolated biomolecules and clusters, and surface analytical applications.

＜Brief introduction of collaborative research and aims at WRHI＞

Gas phase techniques enable the study of isolated molecules, free of interactions. A major thrust is the laser spectroscopy of isolated biomolecular building blocks. These include single DNA bases and amino acids, as well as their clusters with each other and with water molecules. These studies touch on questions such as: “What is the chemical origin of life?” What makes a peptide fold?”, “What cause pigments in works of art to fade?’, or “How is the machinery of life protected from UV radiative damage?” The UCSB lab studies the underlying photochemical processes in neutral molecules. The Fujii group at Tokyo Tech will study the same molecular systems in their ionic form. The combination of these two complementary approaches may be expected to deepen our insights in the fundamental chemistry of light interacting with matter.

＜Collaborative Researcher＞

Dr. Masaaki Fujii(Professor, Laboratory for Chemistry and Life Science, Institute of Innovative Research, Tokyo Tech)