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Chemistry News
by Charles B. Harris,
Chair
and
Joel B. Hildebrand
Distinguished Professor
ESTABLISHING A MATERIALS
CHEMISTRY PROGRAM
Our chemical biology program has proven to be extremely popular with students. Undergraduate
applications to the department are up by more than 70 percent, we have a net influx of students
(mainly transfers from L&S), and more than 150 undergraduate students are currently enrolled as
chemical biology majors.
There is fascinating science taking place at the intersection
of a variety of disciplines, and I believe that materials
chemistry will join chemical biology as one of the
cornerstones of chemical research and education. We have
started to think about the kinds of course requirements
that would serve as the foundation of an undergraduate
degree program, looking at materials chemistry from as
broad and interdisciplinary a perspective as possible.
I don’t want to take a parochial view of the field. I envision
structuring the materials chemistry program along the
same lines as the chemical biology program. At the undergraduate
level, we are developing two new courses, with
professors Jeff Long and Ken Sauer taking the initiative,
and we would like to initiate the courses in spring of
2006. We have decided to place the first course, “An
Introduction to Materials Chemistry,” in the spring, just
after the first semester of freshman chemistry, which
would be a pre-requisite. I believe that putting it further
along in the curriculum—a student’s second year or
later—would be too late to attract students from other
departments. The second course is being developed for
the second or third year of the student’s tenure.
We are also looking to hire another faculty member in
the general area of materials chemistry next year, and I
will keep you posted on that search. Of course, the availability
of space is an ever-present concern, and we need to
Carolyn Bertozzi’s election to the National Academy of
Sciences brings the number of active NAS members in the
department to 23.
make sure that we have room for all of our existing and
new chemistry faculty and students. Once the new
Stanley Hall comes online in the next year, we will have an
easier time with space constraints.
Leadership from the department to the hill
Chemistry professor Graham Fleming has been appointed
the Deputy Director of LBNL. A distinguished researcher,
teacher and administrator who has been in the department
since 1997, Fleming is a world leader in the field of time-resolved
spectroscopy. His campus service has included positions as codirector
of the California Institute for Quantitative Biomedical
Research (QB3), and faculty lead and advisor to the chancellor
on the Stanley Hall replacement building. In addition, chemistry
professor Paul Alivisatos has been appointed as a
new Associate Laboratory Director (ALD) for physical
sciences. Alivisatos, who has served as Materials Sciences
division director since 2003 and heads the Lab’s Molecular
Foundry project, is recognized internationally as one of the
“major figures” in nanoscience. I am sure that LBNL will benefit
from our faculty members’ experience and ideas.
And congratulations to current Dean Clayton
Heathcock, who will lead Berkeley-QB3 activities as
Chief Scientist beginning July 1. In his new QB3 role
Heathcock will help develop new scientific programs
across the three QB3 campuses and with LBNL. Poor
Clayton: he keeps trying to retire, but we keep luring him
back to campus.
Faculty honors
6 BERKELEY COLLEGE OF CHEMISTRY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .