Our vision is to enhance our reputation as a world-class teaching and research institution which is recognized for its innovation, excellence and discovery, and attracts the best students and staff worldwide.
Our mission is to maintain a Department that is regarded as equal to any in terms of its relevance of teaching and research, its quality of support and facilities and the learning opportunities and working experience it offers.
Chemistry in Cambridge aims to support fundamental science of the highest quality in a first class physical environment. The Department includes a large number of internationally recognised research groups covering an exceptionally broad spectrum of chemical science ranging from molecular biology to geophysics. Our enthusiastic research culture embraces new challenging areas, including strong collaborations with other academic disciplines and institutions, while maintaining a powerful presence in the traditional core areas of chemistry.
The Chemistry Department hosts around 200 postdoctoral research staff, over 250 postgraduate students, and around 60 academic staff, including newly independent researchers.
Three strategic collaborative research areas unify the development of research within the Department:
- Chemistry of Health aims to advance the understanding of health and disease in a number of areas that are of global importance: these include ageing, cancer and infection.
- Sustainable Energy, Environment and Climate aims to increase understanding of the impact of chemical processes on the environment and to develop sustainable energy systems.
- Innovative Molecular and Materials Design aims to transform the development and assemblyof important functional chemicals to produce new high-value products that will lead to novel applications in health care, agriculture, energy and consumer products.
And more specifically, we define ourselves according to 5 core research areas:
- Biological Chemistry with a focus on enzymes, nucleic acids, protein folding and misfolding and physical techniques; with relevance to health and disease, drug discovery, sensors, nanotechnology, ageing and energy research applications.
- Materials Chemistry including surfaces, interfaces, polymers, nanoparticles and nanoporous materials, self-assembly and biomaterials, with applications relevant to: oil recovery and separation, catalysis, photovoltaics, fuel cells and batteries, crystallization and pharmaceutical formulation, gas sorption, energy, functional materials, biocompatible materials, computer memory and sensors.
- Physical Chemistry including atmospheric sciences, surfaces and interfaces, materials, and physical and chemical aspects of the behaviour of biopolymers and other soft systems.
- Synthetic Chemistry including complex molecule synthesis, synthetic catalysis, synthetic assembly, synthetic biology and medicine, new technology for efficient synthesis, green synthesis and preparation of new materials.
- Theoretical Chemistry including quantum dynamics, modelling soft materials, protein folding and binding, biomolecules in motion, pharmacological activity, molecular switches, redox chemistry, designing bioactive molecule and drugs, chemical biology, crystallography, and simulation of spectroscopic studies.