Mike Appointed Professor of Digital Pharmaceutical Material Design at the University of Strathclyde
Summer 2026
Mike has been appointed Professor of Digital Pharmaceutical Material Design at the University of Strathclyde and CMAC, while continuing his primary academic appointment at the University of Rochester. This unique transatlantic position will allow Mike to build an integrated research program spanning two internationally recognized institutions, connecting fundamental materials chemistry in Rochester with pharmaceutical materials science, digital design, and advanced manufacturing at Strathclyde.
At Strathclyde, Mike will establish a research program focused on developing digital approaches for understanding, predicting, and designing pharmaceutical materials. His work seeks to bridge fundamental materials science with pharmaceutical development by combining advanced spectroscopy, crystallography, quantum chemistry, machine learning, and artificial intelligence to understand how atomic- and molecular-scale phenomena govern material behavior across larger length scales.
A major focus of the program will be the development of predictive, physics-based models that connect molecular structure, intermolecular interactions, and material dynamics to pharmaceutical properties such as crystallization, stability, manufacturability, formulation performance, and processing behavior. By integrating atomistic simulations with emerging data-driven methodologies, the research aims to accelerate the development of next-generation pharmaceutical materials and manufacturing technologies.
CMAC provides a uniquely interdisciplinary environment that brings together expertise in pharmaceutical science, advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, digital engineering, and industrial translation. Through close partnerships with industry, the center serves as a global hub for advancing pharmaceutical development and enabling the transition toward Quality by Digital Design.
The appointment provides access to CMAC’s world-class facilities, advanced characterization capabilities, high-performance computing infrastructure, and extensive industrial network. These resources will support new efforts aimed at digitally designing pharmaceutical materials before they are physically synthesized, enabling more efficient development pathways and improving the stability, manufacturability, and performance of future medicines.
By existing alongside Mike’s ongoing role at the University of Rochester, the position creates new opportunities for collaboration, student training, and scientific exchange across the United States and the United Kingdom. Students and researchers will have expanded opportunities to engage with complementary research environments, access international expertise, world-class facilities, and unique training opportunities while developing projects that connect fundamental molecular-level science with real-world pharmaceutical applications.
The dual appointment also creates a unique platform for collaborative research that would be difficult to achieve within a single institution. By leveraging the complementary strengths of Rochester and Strathclyde, the program will foster new partnerships spanning materials science, pharmaceutical manufacturing, artificial intelligence, spectroscopy, computational chemistry, and advanced characterization. These efforts will create expanded opportunities for students, postdoctoral researchers, and collaborators to work across disciplines, institutions, and international boundaries while accelerating the translation of fundamental discoveries into practical technologies.
The new role strengthens opportunities for collaboration between academic groups, industrial partners, and international research networks focused on materials design, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and artificial intelligence. By linking the capabilities of Rochester and Strathclyde, Mike’s group aims to develop new tools and technologies that accelerate the discovery, optimization, and manufacture of pharmaceutical materials.
