From left: Professor Rosana Collepardo and Professor Alex Thom. Image by Gabriella Bocchetti and Nathan Pitt, Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry©University of Cambridge
The Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry is pleased to announce and warmly congratulate two distinguished academics on their promotions: Rosana Collepardo to Professor (Grade 12) and Alex Thom to Professor (Grade 11).
Rosana Collepardo’s research sits at the interface of chemistry, physics, and biology. She develops multiscale computational models to investigate how DNA is packaged within cells, how biomolecules form membraneless compartments through phase separation, and how chromatin structure and epigenetic mechanisms influence gene expression. Her work contributes to a deeper understanding of genome organisation and regulation at the molecular level.
Alex Thom’s work is in theoretical and computational chemistry. He focuses on the development of new methods and software to calculate highly accurate electronic energies. His research includes modelling excited states in complex molecular systems—such as chromophores and single-molecule magnets—and exploring how quantum computing can be used for chemical simulations.
These promotions recognise their important contributions to the advancement of chemical science of which they, and the Department, can rightly be proud.