Division of Chemical Physics

DCP Home | Newsletters | November 2012

In this issue:

Message from the Chair:

I am pleased to report that the Division is going strong. We have been very active recently, with diverse symposia at the annual March Meetings, graduate student and postdoctoral researcher travel awards for the March Meetings, prizes, fellowship nominations, an improved web site, and collaboration with JCP and the PHYS Division of the ACS. We will have a strong program at the upcoming March Meeting in Baltimore, arranged by Jim Skinner. I encourage you to bookmark the DCP home page to keep abreast of developments and deadlines: http://www.aps.org/units/dcp/

I also encourage to keep in mind and bring to the attention of others, as appropriate that contributed oral presentations by members of the APS, including student and early career researchers, are a strong feature of the March Meeting and that the first year of student membership in DCP is free.

Don Truhlar
Chair, DCP

APS March Meeting Deadlines

APS March Meeting Information

Abstract Submission Deadline: 9 Nov 2012

Early Registration Deadline (lowest fees): 18 Jan 2013

Housing: 7 Feb 2013

Late Registration Deadline (higher fees): 15 Feb 2013

APS DCP March Meeting Dependent Child Care Award: 17 Feb 2013

APS DCP Fellowship Deadline: 1 Feb 2013

APS March Meeting DCP Focus Sessions

05.1.1. Physics of glasses and viscous liquids

The last decade of efforts in supercooled liquid and glass research is paying off handsomely. Rapid improvements in numerical and experimental methods have notably led to novel microscopic insights into the dynamics and structure of glass formers. A parallel burst of theoretical activity further suggests that certain controversies about the glass transition could soon be resolved. For this focus session, we bring together some of the key scientists involved in these advances to explore together the path ahead.

Organizers: Patrick Charbonneau (Duke University) and Mark Ediger (University of Wisconsin)

Invited speakers:
Ludovic Berthier (Université de Montpellier II)
Elisabeth Bouchaud (CEA)
Patrick Charbonneau (Duke University)
Jeppe Dyre (Roskilde Universitet)
Takeshi Egami (Univ. of Tennessee, Knoxville/Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
Zahra Fakhraai (University of Pennsylvania)
Aaron Keys (University of California, Berkeley)
David Reichman (Columbia University)
Gilles Tarjus (Université de Paris VI)
Francesco Zamponi (École Normale Supérieure, Paris)

05.1.2. Supercooled and nanoconfined water

Supercooled water shows a number of thermodynamic, structural and dynamical anomalies, and to explain them several hypotheses have been put forward. This focus session will present the most recent experimental, computational and theoretical developments on understanding cold and supercooled liquid water, the interplay between anomalies in the liquid state and crystallization of ice, the nature of the glass phases of water and their glass transition signatures, and the effect of nanoconfinement and solutes on the stable and metastable phase diagram of water.

Organizers: Valeria Molinero (University of Utah) and Anders Nilsson (SLAC)

Invited speakers:
Pablo Debenedetti (Princeton University)
Mikhail Anisimov (University of Maryland)
Nicolas Giovambattista (Brooklyn CUNY)
Francesco Mallamace (Messina)
Paola Gallo (Roma Tre)
Giulia Galli (UC Davis)
Christiane Alba-Simionesco (Leon Brillouin Lab)
Barbara Wyslouzil (Ohio State University)
Ben Murray (University of Leeds)
Tianshu Li (George Washington University)
Hajime Tanaka (Univeristy of Tokyo)

05.1.3. Motor dynamics: From single molecules to cells

Molecular motors are integral components of the living cell, powering important processes ranging from DNA replication to cell division. This focus session brings together interdisciplinary scientists interested in the physical mechanisms of individual motors as well as ensembles of motors working together. Active exchanges of the latest experimental data with theoretical/computational perspectives are encouraged.

Organizers: Sean Sun (Johns Hopkins University) and Zev Bryant (Stanford University)

Invited speakers:
Tolya Kolomeisky (Rice University)
Aaron Dinner (University of Chicago)
Sam Walcott (UC Davis)
Alex Mogilner (UC Davis)
Yann Chemla (University of Illinois)
Ryota Iino (Tokyo University)
Stephan Grill (MPI-MCBG)
Andrew Turberfield (Oxford University)
Arne Gennerich (Einstein University)
Richard Berry (Oxford University)

05.1.4. Protein misfolding and aggregation

The cell relies on the presence of correctly folded, functional proteins in order to operate. Protein misfolding and ensuing self-assembly into toxic aggregates can have deleterious effects on the cell. This focus session will present experimental and theoretical developments on understanding the kinetics and dynamics of the misfolding and aggregation processes in solution and on membrane surfaces, and structural determination of the self-assembling species ranging from small soluble oligomers to large fibrils.

Organizers: Elsa Yan (Yale University) and Joan-Emma Shea (UCSB)

Invited speakers:
David Eliezer (Weill Cornell Medical College)
Andrew Miranker (Yale University)
Steve Meredith (University of Chicago)
Ayyalusamy Ramamoorthy (University of Michigan)
Rob Tycko (NIH)
Martin Zanni (University of Wisconsin)
Reed Wicker (NIH)
Roland Winter (Technical University Dortmund, Germany)
John Straub (Boston University)
Carol Hall (North Carolina State University)
Normand Mousseau (Université de Montréal)

05.1.5. Multiscale modeling: Coarse-graining in space and time

Nature abounds in multiscale phenomena in which complex emergent dynamics on the mesoscale demonstrate exquisite sensitivity to subtle atomic interactions. Multiscale models provide a powerful computational framework for addressing this coupling between disparate length and time scales. This focus session surveys recent advances and outstanding challenges in the development of multiscale methods, and leading applications that highlight the power and promise of such models.

Organizers: William Noid (Pennsylvania State University) and Garyk Papoian (University of Maryland)

Invited speakers:
Cecilia Clementi (Rice University)
Qiang Cui (University of Wisconsin)
Juan de Pablo (University of Wisconsin, University of Chicago)
Raymond Kapral (University of Toronto)
Kurt Kremer (Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research)
Siewert-Jan Marrink (University of Groningen)
Valeria Molinero (University of Utah)
Christine Peter (Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research)
M. Scott Shell (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Wataru Shinoda (National Inst. of Advanced Industrial Science and Tech., Japan)
Greg Voth (University of Chicago)

05.1.6. DCP Prize session: Broida, Langmuir and Plyler Prize presentations

Invited speakers:
Daniel Neumark, Herb P. Broida Prize winner
Brooks Pate, Earle K. Plyler Prize winner
Wilson Ho, Irving Langmuir Prize winner

Organizer: Jim Skinner (University of Wisconsin)

More information about the DCP Focus Symposia.

Congratulations to APS Prize Winners

The Division of Chemical Physics extends its congratulations to all the 2013 APS Prize Award, Medal, Lectureship, and Dissertation Award winners.

The three awards administered by the DCP are the Broida, Langmuir and Plyler Prizes.

The Herbert P. Broida Prize is administered by the DCP and DAMOP and funded by generous contributions from the friends and colleagues of Herbert P. Broida. We congratulate Daniel Neumark as the winner of the 2013 Broida Prize.

The Irving Langmuir Prize in Chemical Physics is administered by the DCP and funded by generous contributions from the GE Fund and GE R&D. We congratulate Wilson Ho as the 2013 Langmuir Prize winner.

The Earle K. Plyler Prize for Molecular Spectroscopy and Dynamics is administered by the DCP and sponsored by The Journal of Chemical Physics. We congratulate Brooks Pate as the winner of the 2013 Plyler Prize.

More information about winners of APS prizes and awards in 2012 is available on the web.

Fellowship Committee and Nominations

The DCP extends its thanks to the 2012 DCP Fellowship Committee, Bill Reinhardt (Chair), Al Wagner and Hanna Reisler.

We encourage the nomination for fellowship of deserving candidates. Nominations for 2013 APS Fellowship to be considered by the DCP Fellowship Committee should be made before the deadline, which will be the beginning of February 2013. http://www.aps.org/programs/honors/fellowships/deadlines.cfm

Instructions for submitting a nomination for consideration next year are included on the APS web site. Attracting and serving a diverse and inclusive membership worldwide is a primary goal for APS. In calling for nominations, we wish to remind you how important it is to give full consideration to qualified women, members of underrepresented minority groups, and scientists from outside the United States.

DCP Membership

Membership in the American Physical Society's Division of Chemical Physics allows you to directly support a primary forum for chemical physics research. The status and influence of the DCP within the APS is dependent on the number of DCP members. Increasing DCP membership is crucial to preserving this important professional asset. If you are not a DCP member, we encourage you to join on the web or by phone (301-209-3280). Remember, students get their first year of DCP membership for free.