Measurements performed as a function of temperature provide information about secondary structure stability. We are currently working towards obtaining a scale of the intrinsic helix propensities of the different amino acids. In related work we are collaborating with a group in France to develop a new experiment to measure the dipole moments of unsolvated peptides and proteins. We also are studying proteins and peptides solvated with a known number of water molecules. The properties of a material change as its dimensions drop below a micrometer and enter the nanometer range.
Atomic clusters containing tens of atoms lie at the small end of the size scale.
In this size regime both the structure and the properties are often very different from the bulk. Our recent work is focused on the Group 4 clusters C n , Si n , Ge n , and Sn n . In addition to determining the structures, we are interested in examining physical properties such as melting points and in determining how they change as a function of cluster size.