Zahra Alavi profile photo

Zahra Alavi

Assistant Professor of Physics | Physics Department

Los Angeles, CA, UNITED STATES

Seaver College of Science and Engineering

Biography

Contact:
Email: zalavi@lmu.edu
Phone Number: 3102582399
Office: Seaver 112

Dr. Zahra Alavi got her bachelor’s degree in her home country, Iran. In 2011 she came to United States to continue her education. During her PhD at UCLA, she worked on the physics of biological macromolecules, which involed diverse areas of condensed matter, non-linear dynamics, nanoscience, polymer physics and material science. After graduating in 2017 she started working at LMU as a visiting assistant professor.

Education

UCLA

PhD, Physics

2017

Sharif University of Technology

B.S., Physics

2011

Tehran-Iran

Areas of Expertise

TeachingPolymer PhysicsPhysicsExperimental BiophysicsMaterial Science

Industry Expertise

  • Education/Learning
  • Research

Research Focus

Mechanical Properties of Biological Macromolecules

The non-equilibrium state ofa living cell is maintained by molecular tasks that biological molecules perform. Many of these essential tasks are performed by enzymes. The ability and efficiency of an enzyme to do a specific biological task (which can be thought of as a chemical reaction in progress) is coupled to its mechanics. These mechanical properties can be studied using a nano-rheology technique, in which a mechanical force is applied to the molecule under study and the response of the molecule is studied.

Image for research focus on Mechanical Properties of Biological Macromolecules

Courses

PHYS254

Electro Magnetism - Lower Division Undergraduate Course