The best Side of ceesdekker
The best Side of ceesdekker
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Midway by his job, Cees Dekker reinvented himself. Just after yrs of hardcore physics, he shifted his aim to ‘nanobiology’ within the switch in the millennium. A time period he coined himself, like a issue of point.
Our group studies bacterial mobile division which is aiming to constitute a ‘base up biology’ in artificial cells that could autonomously divide. Our principal interest lies in mobile division, chromatin construction, and spatial Management.
[Laughs] ‘It was unquestionably an excellent danger! At the time, I was nicely aware that it could go wrong Which I could develop into much less prosperous, but I just overlooked that. Curiosity has constantly been my strongest driving power. And fortuitously it all worked out.’
Our perform was promptly adopted up by Many others, most notably by Phaedon Avouris and colleagues at IBM, who in Oct 1998 released their results on transistors comprised of one- and multi-walled carbon nanotubes in Used Physics Letters.
This yielded a breakthrough. Inside only some months, we have been capable of evaluate transport through someone single-walled carbon nanotube. Dependant on lower-temperature experiments by a superb PhD college student in my group, Sander Tans (now a valued colleague and professor at Delft University of Technology by having an active investigation lab at AMOLF in Amsterdam), we showed that carbon nanotubes have been genuine quantum wires with quite extensive (micrometres) electronic coherence lengths — confirming theoretical predictions of metallic conduct.
Electrical transport in monolayers of phthalocyanine molecular wires and AFM imaging of a single wire bridging two electrodes
What distinguishes biology from chemistry is usually that these elements together make up a residing system. The key of mentioned everyday living, I https://www.ceesdekker.net feel, lies in the interactions, the interplay of Those people molecules. The large question with regard to the origin of existence remains unanswered. How did we ever evolve from uncomplicated molecules into the really complicated programs we see today? We don't know. I need to work on these kinds of significant, open inquiries.’
Finding out DNA loop extrusion by SMC proteins for chromosome architecture with single-molecule assays.
Imagine if, as an alternative to utilizing common prime-down silicon electronics, transistors might be designed from the bottom up applying solitary natural and organic molecules since the switching elements? This concept, which became The idea of today’s subject of molecular electronics, initial emerged from the 1970s.
But carbon nanotubes have remained a investigation matter of significant curiosity to several. Without a doubt, the outlook on making use of carbon nanotubes to construct useful gadgets, in locations like radio-frequency electronics, digital electronics and versatile electronics, stays vivid.
FtsZ treadmilling is important for Z-ring condensation and septal constriction initiation in bacterial mobile division
Afterwards we spoke once more briefly due to the fact Dekker felt that our dialogue of his faith swiftly grew to become purely philosophical, While In addition it concretely assists him in his perform.
Permit’s initially glimpse again in the mean time once you chose to change your concentration from superconductivity and nanotubes to biology at the conclusion of the nineteen nineties.
The biophysicist from Delft – who is The most cited researchers within the Netherlands For several years – can take his accountability to contribute to the rationalization and popularisation of his get the job done for the border of physics and biology really critically and frequently seems from the media; if not to discuss his do the job, then about the connection among science and his Christian faith.