jhf3(at)cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-3647

Prof. Freed has been on the Cornell faculty since 1963. He is a world leader in the ESR field and has received many national and international awards for his work in this field. Under his leadership, the laboratory has pioneered many of the theoretical and instrumental technologies that serve as the basis for the Center. He provides the overall direction of the Center and actively participates in all facets of its scientific programs, and its administration.
 

Petr P. Borbat
Senior Research Associate
Associate Director

ppb(at)ccmr.cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-6132

Dr. Borbat joined the Freed Research Group at Cornell, in 1995. His research interests are centered at pulsed ESR, in particular at the development of Multiple-quantum coherence ESR spectroscopy and related techniques relevant to distance measurements in biological applications, and the development of 2D-FT ESR and its applications to study molecular dynamics, including transient phenomena. He manages Center activity in distance measurements in biological systems and in two-dimensional FT ESR. He is also leading the development of unique pulsed ESR instrumentation of the Center.
 

Curt R. Dunnam
Director of Operations
Engineering Physics

crd4(at)cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-6132

Mr. Dunnam is presently Director of Operations for the ACERT National ESR Center and Senior Electronics Engineer for the Freed Research Group. His areas of professional expertise are EM physics, electrical engineering and business management. He joined the Freed Research Group in 1995, after 17 years with the Laboratory for Elementary Particle Physics (formerly LNS), Cornell, employed as an engineering physicist and electrical engineer. Mr. Dunnam has authored and co-authored several papers on particle accelerator instrumentation and beam diagnostics, ESR spectrometry and imaging, and rapid signal acquisition and processing. He also holds 5 U.S. patents relative to microwave and magnetic field instrumentation. Mr. Dunnam's primary research and development responsibilities at ACERT are centered on instrumentation for c.w. and pulsed millimeter-wave ESR spectrometry and high-resolution ESR microimaging.
 

Boris Dzikovski
Senior Research Associate

bd55(at)cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-6132

Dr. Dzikovski joined ACERT in 2002. His profound background in chemistry, chemical physics and ESR spectroscopy has allowed him to play a leading role in educating and providing ACERT users with the information and skills needed to fully benefit from the Center's vast experimentel resources. He is an expert in spin-labeling and tailoring sample preparation to specific needs. While at ACERT he developed important experimental techniques, e.g. the microtome sample preparation technique for studying the orientation dependence of lossy samples at High Field and plays an important role in the practical aspects of optimizing the use of novel experimental methods in High Field and Pulse ESR as well as high-resolution ESR microimaging.
 

Keith A. Earle
Visiting Professor
Associate Director

earle(at)ccmr.cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-0591

Dr. Earle has been involved with the development of HFHF-EPR for over decade starting with the first successful high-resolution instrument at 250GHz, built in collaboration with Dr. W. Bryan Lynch. He is one of the world's leaders in the design and implementation of quasioptical techniques for the instrumentation needs of HFHF-EPR spectroscopists as evidenced by numerous publications and his recent co-authorship of a patent "Variable-coupling quasioptical electron resonance apparatus" (U.S. Pat. #6101015). He has designed and built or consulted on the construction of HFHF-ESR spectrometers at 95, 170, and 240GHz. The high-power cw/pulsed spectrometer at 95GHz built under his supervision has allowed 2D-FT-HFHF-ESR techniques to be included in the arsenal of measurement technologies available to biomedical community. He also collaborates on a variety of theory projects within the ACERT.

Prof. Earle maintains an official faculty connection as a assistant professor of physics with State University of New York at Albany.
 

Jozef K. Moscicki
Visiting Professor
Associate Director

jomo(at)ccmr.cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-0594

Dr. Moscicki has an internationally distinguished record of accomplishments in the field of molecular dynamics in soft matter, both as an experimentalist and as a theoretician. He has an exceptional record as a long-standing collaborator of the FRG. His over 90 months of collaborative research resulted in pioneering new ESR techniques of Dynamic Imaging of Diffusion by EPR and (with Dr. Earle) high field/high frequency (HFHF) ESR spectrometers for multifrequency ESR studies at Cornell. He initiated and contributed substantially to many research projects addressing a number of important contemporary problems of biology, medicine, and materials science.

Prof. Moscicki maintains an official faculty connection as a professor of physics with Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland.
 

Elka Radoslavova Georgieva
Research Associate

erg54(at)cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-6132

Dr. Georgieva's focus has been on the Structure of Proteins and Protein Complexes by Pulse Dipolar ESR, with projects on the DEER study of alpha-Synuclein membrane-bound conformation, including Parkinson's disease mutants. Dr. Georgieva's extensive experience includes biochemical techniques including protein mutagenesis and all stages of soluble and membrane protein recombinant expression, purification, assaying, spin-labeling and reconstituting them into suitable systems, including liposomes, bicelles, and nanodisks. She has the responsibility for protein sample preparation and carrying out distance measurements and data processing for service requests, as well as for several of the center's key biomedical collaborations. Her responsibilities also include developing sample preparation and spin-labeling protocols for high-throughput pulse dipolar spectroscopy and developing practical experience in using new types of PDS probeheads.
 

Zhichun Liang
Senior Research Associate

zl25(at)cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-4980

Dr. Liang is expert on our extensive simulation and non-linear least squares computational packages that are used to analyze our 2D-FT-ESR and multi-frequency experiments. He has had extensive theoretical experience in the application of the stochastic Liouville equation to slow-motional ESR studies. In particular, he developed the current multifrequency version of the sophisticated slowly-relaxing local structure (SRLS) model, that is appropriate for biological systems, and he successfully applied them to our studies of the dynamics of T4 lysozyme and of DNA oligomers. He has also developed other advanced software, including (i) the inclusion of finite pulses into the analysis of 2D-FT-ESR spectra in the slow motional regime, (ii) the adaptation of the SRLS model to NMR relaxation studies of proteins, (iii) chemical exchange: the SRLS program, and (iv) parallelization of our slow-motional ESR programs.
 

Alex L. Lai
Visiting Scientist

ll564(at)cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-6132

Dr. Lai joined ACERT in 2012. His focus is on biomedical applications of ESR. Dr. Lai’s experience includes cellular biology, biochemistry, biophysics and structural biology. He is an expert on membrane protein expression, purification, reconstitution and characterization using DLS, SLS, FTIR, CD, DSC and ITC, as well as membrane protein structural determination and dynamics using NMR and ESR. Prior to joining ACERT, Dr. Lai had been doing research on various membrane fusion systems for a long time. Dr. Lai currently extents his researches on interaction between interfacial peptides and lipid bilayers in membrane fusion systems using advanced High Field CW and Pulse ESR techniques. Dr. Lai also works on distance measurement using Pulse Dipolar ESR.
 

Joanne Trutko
Administrative Manager

jkt27(at)cornell(dot)edu
(607)-255-4632

A recent addition to ACERT staff as Administrative Manager of the ACERT office, Joanne Trutko is a graduate of Cornell University.  She provides administrative support for manuscript and grant submissions and serves as point of contact for internal and external scientists, collaborators, and visitors.  Prior to joining ACERT, Joanne was Aide to the Borough Administrator and Mayor of Glen Ridge, New Jersey,  Marketing Manager for the Professional Books Division of Van Nostrand Reinhold Publishers, Marketing Manager for the College Division of John Wiley & Sons, Publishers and has worked for Northeastern Ohio planning commissions in water pollution.
 

Diane Patzer
Technician

dianec(at)ccmr.cornell(dot)edu
(607)-254-8708