Joanna Aizenberg

Affiliations

• • Director of the Kavli Institute for Bionano Science and Technology

• • Amy Smith Berylson Professor of Materials Science in the
    School of Engineering and Applied Science

• • Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology in the
    Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology

• • Founding Core Faculty and Platform Leader of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering

• • Faculty Associate, Harvard University Center for the Environment

• • Participant, Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center

• • Participant, Materials Research Science and Engineering Center

• • Faculty Affiliate, BASF Advanced Research Initiative at Harvard

Joanna Aizenberg pursues a broad range of research interests that include biomineralization, biomimetics, self-assembly, crystal engineering, surface chemistry, nanofabrication, biomaterials, biomechanics and biooptics.

She received the B.S. degree in Chemistry in 1981, the M.S. degree in Physical Chemistry in 1984 from Moscow State University, and the Ph.D. degree in Structural Biology from the Weizmann Institute of Science in 1996. She then went to Harvard University where she did postdoctoral research with George Whitesides on micro/nanofabrication and near-field optics.

In 1998 Aizenberg joined Bell Labs as a member of the Technical Staff where she has made several pioneering contributions including developing new biomimetic approaches for the synthesis of ordered mineral films with highly controlled shapes and orientations, and discovering unique optical systems formed by organisms (microlenses and optical fibers) that outshine technological analogs, and characterized the associated organic molecules. In 2007 Aizenberg joined the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Professor Aizenberg's research is aimed at understanding some of the basic principles of biomineralization and the economy with which biology solves complex problems in the design of functional inorganic materials. She then uses biological principles as guidance in developing new, bio-inspired synthetic routes and nanofabrication strategies that would lead to advanced materials and devices. Aizenberg is one of the pioneers of this rapidly developing field of biomimetic inorganic materials synthesis.

"In the course of evolution, Nature has developed strategies that endow biological processes with exquisite selectivity and specificity, and produce superior materials and structures," says Aizenberg. "This is wonderfully exemplified in the realm of inorganic materials formation by organisms, so-called 'biomineralization'. Learning from and mastering Nature's concepts not only satisfies humankind's insatiable curiosity for understanding the world around us, but also promises to drive a paradigm shift in modern materials science and technology."


Positions & Employment

Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

• 2007-Present: Faculty Member

Bell Laboratories, Lucent Techologies

• 1998-2007: Researcher, Nanotechnology Research Department

Harvard University, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology

• 1996-1998: Postdoctoral Associate with Professor George M. Whitesides

Brookhaven National Laboratory, National Synchrotron Light Source

• 1993-1995: Visiting Scientist

Moscow Institute of Geology, Moscow, USSR

• 1986-1991: Researcher

Institute of Mining and Raw Materials, Moscow, USSR

• 1984-1985: Chemist

Education

• • B.S., 1981, Chemistry, Moscow State University

• • M.S., 1984, Physical Chemistry, Moscow State University

• • Ph.D., 1996, Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science

Other Experience

• • Director of Science Programs, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, 2010-2013

• • Member of the Board of Directors of the Materials
    Research Society (MRS)

• • Member of the Board on Physics and Astronomy of the
    National Academies

• • Member of the Advisory Board of Langmuir
    and Chemistry of Materials

Awards and Honors

View publications in the Aizenberg group