Dragnea Research Group

Exploring and emulating the synergies encountered in self-organizing biological matter has been a central theme of our research program.
1.Development of new imaging tools and techniques, for in situ single nanoparticle growth, optical stress in nanoparticle clusters, and mechanical stress in viruses.
2.Work on fundamental questions relating to bio-inspired self-assembly, e.g. How to achieve bottom-up, efficient three-dimensional organization, controlled at multiple scales? How do we reach beyond the crystalline state in metamaterials? What physical principles govern morphogenesis in self-organized biological systems such as viruses?
3.Applied research, explorations in bio-enabled synthesis of metamaterials, energy transduction at nanoscale, and the biomedical field.