Murugappan Muthukumar


Wilmer D. Barrett Professor of Polymer Science and Engineering

Department of Polymer Science and Engineering
Room A212, Conte Research Center
University of Massachusetts
120 Governors Drive
Amherst, MA 01003

Phone: 413-577-1212; Fax: 413-545-0082
Email: muthu@polysci.umass.edu


Research Interests


My research group is engaged in understanding how macromolecules, both biological and synthetic, assume their sizes and shapes, organize into assemblies, and move around in crowded environments. We employ a combination of theoretical, computational, and experimental techniques to uncover the underlying mechanisms of macromolecular phenomena in Physical Biology and Polymer Physics.

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Education


  • B.S. Chemistry, University of Madras, 1972
  • Ph.D. Chemical Physics, The University of Chicago, 1979

Honors and Awards


  • 1983-1985, Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow
  • 1986, Dillon Medal, American Physical Society
  • 1987, Fellow of American Physical Society
  • 1988, Maurice L. Huggin Memorial Award, Gordon Research
  • 1997, Distinguished Faculty Lecturer, Chancellor's Medal, UMass
  • 1998, Ford High Polymer Physics Prize, American Physical Society
  • 1999, Miller Visiting Professor, University of California, Berkeley
  • 2006, Humboldt Prize, Germany
  • 2007, Gutenberg Award, University of Mainz, Germany
  • 2017, ACS Award in Polymer Chemistry

Professional Experience


  • Wilmer D. Barrett Professor of Polymer Science and Engineering, UMass Amherst, 2000-present
  • Professor, Polymer Science and Engineering Department, UMass Amherst, 1988-2000
  • Associate Professor, Polymer Science and Engineering Department, UMass Amherst, 1983-1988
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, Illinois Institute of Technology, 1980-1983
  • Research Associate, Cavendish Laboratory, Univ. of Cambridge, Cambridge, England, 1979-1981
  • Adjunct Professor of Physics, UMass Amherst, 1988-present
  • Adjunct Associate Editor (Soft Matter Physics) for Physical Review Letters, 1999-2007
  • Associate Editor for The Journal of Chemical Physics, present