Wybren Jan Buma appointed Professor of Spectroscopy of Photoactive Molecules and Materials

Buma is a professor at the University of Amsterdam’s Van 't Hoff Institute for Molecular Sciences. There he uses the interaction between light and molecules to actively control molecules. He also uses molecules as sensitive bio-sensors to study a wide range of chemical, physical and biological processes.

Professor Buma is no stranger to the FELIX Laboratory; he has been successfully using the FELIX lasers for his studies for years, as an external researcher. He will be affiliated to the FELIX Laboratory one day a week through the Molecular Structure & Dynamics group, which is part of the Institute for Molecules and Materials. The research will focus on the spectroscopy and dynamics of electronically excited states of photoactive molecules and materials. Advanced laser spectroscopy techniques will be used in this research, and the FELIX lasers offer unique possibilities for opening new research lines.

Career

Professor Buma (Leiden, 1961) earned a Master’s degree in Experimental Physics (cum laude) and a Master’s degree in Theoretical Chemistry (cum laude) from Leiden University in 1985. He went on to earn his PhD (also cum laude) from the same university in 1989. He has been working at the University of Amsterdam since 1991.