The O'Hern Group, led by PI Prof. Corey S. O'Hern from the Departments of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science, Physics, and Computational Biology and Bioinformatics at Yale University, tackles a broad range of fundamental questions in soft matter and biological physics using a combination of theoretical and computational techniques.  In soft matter, the group seeks a predictive understanding of glass and jamming transitions, in which materials such as granular media, dense colloidal systems, and foams, develop solid-like properties in the absence of crystallization over a narrow range of control parameters.  In the area of biological physics, the O'Hern group is interested in the dynamics of protein folding, unfolding, and aggregation, the self-assembly of protein nanogels, and the structural and mechanical properties of cells and tissues.

The O'Hern group draws Ph.D. students from a number of Departments from the Physical, Engineering, and Biolgoical Sciences at Yale including Applied Physics, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Computational Biology & Bioinformatics, Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science, Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry, and Physics.  Prof. O'Hern is a member of the Executive Committees for the Integrated Graduate Program in Physical and Engineering Biology and Raymond and Beverly Sackler Institute for Biological, Physical, and Engineering Sciences, which promote interdisciplinary research and teaching at the interface of physics and biology.  The O'Hern group also benefits from the presence of the Yale MRSEC, Yale Institute for Nanoscience and Quantum Engineering, and Yale's FAS High Performance Computing Core.