Carl Michal

Carl Michal is a Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of British Columbia, with an associate membership in the Department of Chemistry. His research focuses on solid-state NMR applications across diverse materials systems, including biological tissues, nanomaterials, and polymers.

Education:

• BSc Physics, University of British Columbia (1992)
• PhD Physics, Cornell University (1997)
• Postdoctoral Fellow, National Institutes of Health (1999)

Professor Michal's research group investigates a wide variety of materials using solid-state NMR techniques. His primary research areas include studying white matter brain tissue to understand MRI contrast mechanisms, investigating nanomaterials such as cellulose nanocrystals, examining transport phenomena in polymer gels and electrolytes, and developing novel NMR methods. His work bridges physics, chemistry, materials science, and biomedical applications, with particular emphasis on understanding molecular structure and dynamics in complex systems.

Analysis of his recent publications reveals a consistent focus on NMR methodology development alongside applications to diverse materials systems. His work spans fundamental physics of NMR techniques, biomaterials characterization (particularly spider silk and other protein-based materials), nanomaterials analysis (including cellulose nanocrystals), and practical applications in fields ranging from energy storage to medical imaging. The interdisciplinary nature of his research is evident in publications appearing in chemistry, physics, materials science, and biomedical journals.

Professor Michal actively mentors graduate students, supervising both MSc and PhD candidates. His current students include Shu Han (PhD) working on whelk egg capsules and Alan Manning (MSc) characterizing mesoporous glass materials. His former students have completed research on topics including solid polymer electrolytes, protein-based biomaterials, nanocrystalline cellulose, spider silk, and hagfish slime threads.

Based in the Hennings building at UBC (office 411, lab 100), Michal teaches PHYS 117 and PHYS 319, with the latter course focusing on embedded systems using the MSP430 microcontroller platform. His research group, the Solid-State NMR Group, maintains an active research program with ongoing projects in multiple areas of materials characterization.