Samuel P. Gido

Degree Information:
B.S.E. Chemical Engineering, Princeton University, 1988
Ph.D. Chemical Engineering and Polymer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1993

Mailing Address:
Department of Polymer Science and Engineering
Room A216, Conte Research Center
University of Massachusetts Amherst
120 Governors Drive
Amherst, MA 01003

Phone: 413-577-1216

Email: gido@mail.pse.umass.edu

Fax: 413-545-0082

Research Interests:
Morphology of self-assembling materials of controlled molecular architecture including; Block Copolymers, biopolymers, liquid crystalline polymers, and semicrystalline polymers; Electron microscopy, X-ray and neutron scattering.

Current Research:
My research is focused on understanding how controlled polymer molecular architecture can be used to guide the self assembly and processing behavior of materials in order to create novel and useful structures on a morphological length scale (nanometers to microns). Materials of interest are those in which either nature or the synthetic polymer chemist exercises precise control over molecular weight, monomer sequence, sterioregularity, chain branching, etc Part of my research effort is focused on the study of proteins and synthetic polypeptides with highly repetitive amino acid sequences that form unusual crystalline and liquid crystalline structures. Other classes of materials with well defined molecular architecture that we are investigating are block and graft copolymers, polymer liquid crystals, and model semicrystalline materials. I have a particular interest in defect structures in self assembling materials such as grains and grain boundaries, dislocations and disclinations. These defect structures have important influences on materials properties and their minimization is important in recent research on the synthesis of self assembling nanostructures. As a polymer morphologist, I rely heavily on electron microscopy and scattering techniques to determine aspects of materials structure that are then related back to the molecular architectures and the self assembly processes.

Honors and Distinctions:

University of Massachusetts

The Mettler Toledo Thermal Analysis Award in Honor of Prof. Edith A. Turi. Shared with E. B. Coughlin, 2002
The OMNOVA Solutions Foundation, OMNOVA Solutions Signature University Award for Research, 2000
NSF Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award, 1996
Army Young Investigator Award, 1995
W. M. Keck Foundation Award, 1994

Graduate School

Materials Research Society (MRS) Graduate Student Award Winner, 1991
Sigma Xi, National Scientific Research Honor Society, 1990
Austin Endowed Fellowship, sponsored by Dow Chemical, 1988

Undergraduate

Tau Beta Pi national engineering honor society (Princeton Univ. Chapter), 1986
Gilbert Solar Scholarship of the American Society for Metals, 1984
Carl J. Long Science Award & Scholarship of the Pennsylvania Air Force Association, 1984