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Scientist
to lead Center for Scientific and Technical Innovations
Richardson, Texas (August 1, 2002)
Dr. Alan G. MacDiarmid, 2000 Nobel
Laureate in Chemistry, will join The University of Texas at
Dallas as holder of the newly created James Von Ehr Distinguished
Chair of Science and Technology. He becomes the second Nobel
Laureate to serve on the faculty of the 33-year old institution.
MacDiarmid will hold professorial appointments in UTD’s
Departments of Chemistry and Physics and will lead a Center
for Scientific and Technical Innovations, studying a range
of topics including biological systems and nanoscience.
“In the brief time I have been associated with UTD,
it has become evident to me that the university has made a
serious commitment to advance into the ranks of the world’s
leading institutions of research and higher education,”
said MacDiarmid. “UTD’s initiation during the
last year of major efforts in nanotechnology and sickle cell
disease is extremely impressive. It is my hope that I can
contribute to the university’s rapid progress by joining
its distinguished faculty and sharing in the excitement of
building a great institution.”
“Having an eminent scientist like Alan MacDiarmid join
our faculty is a proud moment in our brief university history,”
said President Franklyn G. Jenifer. “It validates our
focus on excellence in science and technology education and
research, and portends great things for our future.”
The James Von Ehr Distinguished Chair in Science and Technology,
which Dr. MacDiarmid will be the first UTD faculty member
to hold, has been endowed by a gift from James Von Ehr, a
UTD alumnus and Founder/CEO of Zyvex Corporation of Richardson,
Texas, a pioneering company in the field of nanotechnology.
According to Mr. Von Ehr, “Alan MacDiarmid’s move
to Dallas is an important development for the technology business
sector of North Texas. His presence here increases the intellectual
capital of the region and creates intriguing possibilities
for innovative collaborative work between technology companies
such as Zyvex and one of today’s truly great scientific
minds.”
MacDiarmid shared the 2000 Nobel Prize in chemistry with Alan
Heeger and Hideki Shiradawa for their discoveries that plastics
can be made electrically conductive, thus creating the field
of conducting polymers, or “synthetic metals.”
Some of the practical applications of his research include
rechargeable batteries, gas sensors and light-emitting devices.
In recent years, MacDiarmid has pioneered research in the
field of nanoelectronics.
Last August, MacDiarmid began his affiliation with UTD as
distinguished scholar in residence, senior advisor on science
and technology to UTD President Jenifer, and chair of the
advisory board of the UTD NanoTech Institute. During his time
on campus, MacDiarmid has interacted intensively with faculty,
staff and students, including meeting with freshman science
students.
Born in New Zealand, MacDiarmid received an MSc degree from
the University of New Zealand and PhD degrees from the University
of Wisconsin, where he was a Fulbright Scholar, and from Cambridge
University. He rose through the faculty ranks of the University
of Pennsylvania to become the Blanchard Professor of Chemistry.
MacDiarmid is the author or co-author of some 600 research
papers and holds 20 patents. He has received numerous awards,
medals and honorary degrees for his scientific achievements,
most recently election to the National Academies of Sciences
and of Engineering.
UTD’s first Nobel Laureate faculty member was the late
Polykarp Kusch, who served as professor of Physics from 1972
to 1992. Kusch shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1955.
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