News Story

David A. Weitz, Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics and of Applied Physics, who holds a joint appointment in the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and the Department of Physics, was elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS).

Weitz, an expert in the physics of soft condensed matter and an entrepreneur, is among the 72 new members and 18 foreign associates from 14 countries receiving the honor in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.

Weitz and his group study the physics of soft condensed matter, materials easily deformed by external stresses, electric, magnetic or gravitational fields, and even thermal fluctuations.

The goal of this research is to probe and understand the relationship between mesoscopic structure and bulk properties. The group studies both synthetic and biological materials, with interests ranging from fundamental physics to technological applications and from basic materials questions to specific biological problems.

In addition to his involvement with Raindance technologies, a start-up microfluidics-based company, Weitz is the co-director of the BASF Advanced Research Initiative at Harvard, co-director of the Harvard Kavli Institute for Bionano Science & Technology, and director of the Harvard Materials Research Science & Engineering Center.

Courtesy SEAS News Office