Thomas Truskett

Thomas Truskett is a Professor and Dick Rothwell Endowed Chair in Chemical Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, with a secondary appointment in Physics. He leads the Truskett Research Group, focusing on interfaces, complex fluids, and colloidal systems. His work bridges statistical mechanics, soft matter physics, and nanotechnology, with applications in biomedical imaging and materials science. Truskett holds a B.S. from UT Austin (1996), M.A. and Ph.D. from Princeton (1998, 2001), and has held academic roles since 2002. His honors include AAAS and APS Fellowships, the O’Donnell Engineering Award, and NIH/NRSA grants.

• Research Interests: Self-assembly of nanoparticles, confined liquids, protein solutions, and plasmonic materials.
• Key Contributions: Developing models for colloidal gels, nanoparticle assembly, and high-concentration antibody viscosity reduction.
• Grants & Funding: Extensive NIH, NSF, and industry support for projects on biodegradable polymersomes and plasmonic metamaterials.

His group has advised over 40 PhD students and postdocs, many now in academia and industry. Notable alumni include Professors at Texas A&M and University of Washington, and R&D leaders at Bristol-Myers Squibb and Dow.