ABOUT CCE The Caltech Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering (CCE) has maintained excellence in research and education for over a century with active programs in all areas of modern research at the molecular and cellular levels. In keeping with Caltech’s historic focus on fundamental science, many critical conceptual advances and whole fields of modern science can trace their origins to CCE. At the same time, work done in CCE has had real-world impact with new materials, new medicines, new technologies and more. The small size of Caltech facilitates interdisciplinary research, and CCE plays pivotal roles in exciting interdisciplinary efforts at Caltech. Along with one-on-one group collaborations, there are many interdisciplinary centers at Caltech, including: the Resnick Sustainability Institute, the Chen Institute for Neuroscience, the Rosen Bioengineering Center, the Kavli Nanoscience Institute, the Merkin Institute for Translational Research, the Liquid Sunlight Alliance (LiSA), the Institute of Quantum Information and Matter and more. And, of course, if you want to study the chemistry of Mars or Titan, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a division of Caltech, and collaboration opportunities are extensive. In addition to prize-winning research, CCE is home to world-class undergraduate and graduate education in all areas of chemistry, biochemistry, and chemical engineering. CCE’s top-ranked programs blend innovative coursework that requires—and teaches—critical thinking with hands-on research and interdisciplinary collaborations that help students build a fundamental understanding of nature’s processes. Postgraduate training in state-of-the-art laboratories alongside the brightest minds in the field rounds out CCE’s continued commitment to educating the next generation of exceptional scientists.
CHEMISTRY
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING
The Chemistry program at Caltech provides depth in the traditional areas of chemistry—organic and inorganic chemistry, chemical physics, theoretical chemistry, and chemical biology. Research areas include chemical synthesis and catalysis, chemical dynamics and reaction mechanisms, bioinorganic,
Chemical Engineering at Caltech led the famous Project 37 of the American Petroleum Institute that provided much of the basic knowledge on thermodynamics and phase equilibria in hydrocarbon systems. Subsequent developments have led the department to the forefront of research and teaching. Areas of focus include biomolecular studies/bioengineering, sustainability, process systems, materials, and computation. The chemical engineering faculty at Caltech is one of the most distinguished and innovative in the world, actively leading chemical engineering research into new areas of application and involvement.
bioorganic, and biophysical chemistry, chemical biology, and materials chemistry. Chemistry has historical strength in theoretical modeling and structure determination at all levels, a tradition that continues to flourish.
BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOPHYSICS The Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics program, at the interface of biology, chemistry, and physics, seeks to understand the basic molecular mechanisms of life. Thus, biochemists and biophysicists study the atomic structure and folding of biopolymers; their interactions with each other and with small molecules; and the roles of particular biopolymers and biopolymer assemblies in cellular physiology. The basic building block of life is the cell and the intellectual focus of modern biochemistry and biophysics is to understand how individual parts interact to give cells their wide spectrum of functions. In particular, biochemistry and molecular biophysics addresses the principles through which the individual components of cells combine in an orderly self-association to produce their form, their function, and their dynamic behavior.
Over the century since the Gates Laboratory of Chemistry was built for Arthur Noyes, Caltech’s Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering has grown exponentially. Alumnus and CCE chair for 22 years Linus Pauling revolutionized the field with his insights into the nature of the chemical bond (Nobel Prize in 1954) and essentially invented the field of chemical biology. Arnold Beckman (PhD ‘28) invented the pH meter and other revolutionary instruments that led to new discoveries in biochemistry and medicine, and founded Beckman Instruments, the first electronic instrumentation company. Gordon Moore (PhD ‘54) founded the semiconductor chip-making company Intel and authored Moore’s Law (which predicts that the number of transistors on an integrated circuit doubles every two years). Rudy Marcus (Nobel Prize in 1992) revolutionized the theory of the rates of chemical reactions. Ahmed Zewail (Nobel Prize in 1999) pioneered femtochemistry, allowing real-time observation of reaction transition states. Bob Grubbs (Nobel Prize in 2005) enabled olefin metathesis to become a powerful synthetic tool with broad applications in the chemical industry and the pharmaceutical industry. John Seinfeld (Tyler Prize, 2012) carries on Caltech’s pioneering role in studying air pollution, determining the physics and chemistry of atmospheric aerosols. Frances Arnold (Nobel Prize in 2018) developed directed evolution as a way to invent new, protein-catalyzed reactions that are greener and more efficient than conventional processes.
Ahmed Zewail
Arnold Beckman
Rudy Marcus Arthur Noyes
Gordon Moore
John Seinfeld Bob Grubbs Linus Pauling
Frances Arnold
CCE BY THE NUMBERS #1 Chemistry Program Caltech Harvard MIT Stanford UC Berkeley
#2 Chemical Engineering Program MIT Caltech UC Berkeley GIT Stanford University
59
major awards & honors
44 135 342 75 total postdocs
2 Tyler Prizes
3 Wolf Prizes
2 Natl. Medals of Technology & Innovation
5 Nobel Laureates
active faculty
5 Priestly Medals
9 National Medals of Science
5 Natl. Academy of Medicine Members 21 Natl. Academy of Science Members
7
Natl. Academy of Engineers Members
61% Men
total graduate students
incoming graduate students AY 2021-22
19%
Underrepresented Minorites
39%
Women
Recent Faculty Recruitments Hosea Nelson (PhD ’13) returned to Caltech in 2021 as Professor of Chemistry. After graduating from Caltech, Nelson joined the faculty of UCLA in 2015. His research program is focused on the development of enabling technologies for chemical synthesis. His group focuses on this goal through two primary avenues of research. 1) In their structural chemistry subgroup they develop new electron microscopy techniques that enable the characterization of complex molecules, often unattainable using traditional methods. 2) Their synthetic subgroup focuses on the development of new chemical reactions that will enable the efficient and rapid synthesis of bioactive compounds. After graduating from Harvard University in 2014, Shasha Chong joined Caltech as Assistant Professor of Chemistry in 2021. The Chong lab interfaces among chemistry, physics, and biology to tackle the molecular mechanisms of fundamental cellular processes. Chong is interested in intrinsically disordered regions, which compose nearly half of the eukaryotic proteome and perform critical functions in numerous cellular processes without forming stable protein structures. Primary goals of her research include 1) understanding the fundamental rules that govern the interaction behaviors of intrinsically disordered regions and 2) elucidating their roles in regulating gene transcription under normal and disease conditions, including cancer and diabetes.
Born and raised in Istanbul, Turkey, Gözde Demirer will join CCE in 2022 as Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering. Demirer developed nanotechnologies for plant genetic engineering during her PhD studies at UC Berkley. For her postdoctoral work, Demirer joined Prof. Siobhan Brady’s lab at UC Davis, where she studied nutrient use efficiency of tomato and developed high-throughput functional genomics tools to study transcriptional regulation in crops. Demirer will continue this important work in sustainable agriculture at Caltech.
ADVANCEMENT Philanthropic support enables the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering to continue the tradition of excellence in all areas of research and education. Opportunities are available to support new faculty recruitment, graduate and postdoctoral fellowships, instrumentation, diversity and inclusion efforts, and capital projects. Gifts to these areas ensure CCE has the resources to continue to attract exceptional faculty, researchers, and students from around the world, and to equip them to lead innovation research efforts that will transform our society. For more information on supporting CCE, please contact: Janny N. Manasse Senior Director of Development for Chemistry and Chemical Engineering | Advancement and Alumni Relations E: jmanasse@caltech.edu | P: 626-395-1530
The CCE Diversity Committee works with the Division’s Diversity Officer to develop new initiatives, steward ongoing programs, coordinate efforts across the Division, and interface with Institute-level activities that enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion in CCE.
DIVERSITY IN CHEMISTRY INITIATIVE
The mission of the Diversity in Chemistry Initiative (DICI) is to amplify the voices, actions, and successes of under-represented minorities (URMs) in chemistry at Caltech and beyond. DICI includes all black and brown, LGBTQIA+, and disabled individuals as part of the under-represented community. DICI provides a safe space for URMs to share ideas and issues, hosts seminars and panels, and engages in outreach with the goal to increase inclusion and equity in science. The goal of the Caltech Women in Chemistry (WiC) Committee is to support the careers of women in chemistry and related sciences. WiC achieves this by participating in graduate recruitment, providing networking opportunities, hosting events with established women scientists, and serving as an advocate for issues related to gender and science.
WOMEN IN CHEMISTRY
CALTECH SHINES
Caltech Shines is a multi-divisional event celebrating graduate student life at Caltech. This event aims to enrich the student population by introducing Caltech as a community to newly admitted students.
FUTURE IGNITED
The goal of FUTURE Ignited is to support the ambitions of aspiring young scientists who identify as students of color in chemistry, chemical engineering, biochemistry and molecular biophysics, and related areas, who will go on to become part of a diverse generation of scientific leaders.
Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering @CaltechCCE 1200 East California Boulevard Pasadena, California 91125 cce.caltech.edu | ccediv@caltech.edu | (626) 395-6099