Aatto Ilmari Laaksonen
About me
Aatto Laaksonen
Professor Emeritus - Physical Chemistry
Current affiliations:
1) Department of Materials and Environmental Chemistry,
Division of Physical Chemistry, Arrhenius Laboratory,
Stockholm University (SU), 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
2) Centre of Advanced Research in Bio-nanoconjugates and Biopolymers,
Romanian Academy - Petru Poni (PP) Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry,
00487 Iasi, Romania
3) State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented and Chemical Engineering,
Nanjing Tech University (NTU), 210009 Nanjing, China
4) Department of Engineering Sciences and Mathematics, Division of Energy Science,
Luleå University of Technology (LTU), 97187 Luleå, Sweden
EDUCATION
1984 Docent (Habilitation) – Physical Chemistry SU
1981 PhD (Fil.Dr.) – Physical/Theoretical Chemistry SU
Thesis: Finite Perturbation – Configuration Interaction Calculations
of NMR Spin-spin Coupling Constants (Supervisors: Jozef Kowalewski (main),
Björn Roos and Per Siegbahn)
1977-79 Studies in Computer Science at Royal Institute of Technology (KTH)
1976 MSc (Fil.Kand.) – Mathematics (major) SU
1970 High School & Student Diploma - Kiukaisten Yhteiskoulu (KYK), Finland
(it practised by then an experimental curriculum, which, starting in 1972 became
the official Primary School system – “Peruskoulu” in entire Finland)
LANGUAGES
Fluent: Swedish, English, Finnish (native)
Passive: German Beginner: Italian
ACADEMIC WORK EXPERIENCE
2017 - present:
ERA Chair (European Commission) – Institutul de Chimie Macromoleculara
Petru Poni, Romanian Academy, Iasi, Romania 2022-2027
Guest Professor - Creaternity & WISE - Luleå Technical University,
Luleå, Sweden, 2023-
Distinguished Foreign Professor (25%), Nanjing Tech University,
Nanjing, China 2019-
Project Coordinator – 5D-nanoP “Mimicking living matter mechanisms in 5D Chemistry”,
Iasi, Romania 2018-2022
Senior Professor - Physical Chemistry (40%), Ångström Laboratory,
Uppsala University, Sweden, 2018
1976 - 2017:
Professor - Physical Chemistry (SU) 2000- (Emeritus 2017-)
Project Leader – iLEAP “Ionic liquids for lubrication”
(Wallenberg) 2012-2017
Project Manager – EXSELENT “center for porous material”
(VR, Vinnova, SU) 2007- 2016
National Expert & Educator in High Performance Computing
(Swedish HPC-council 50%) 1996-99.
Senior Lecturer - Physical Chemistry (SU) 1987 - 1999
Research Associate (SU) 1982-86
Teaching assistant (SU) 1977-81
First Amanuensis (SU) 1976
INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH EXPERIENCE
Research Associate: IBM Research Laboratories, Kingston (N.Y.) USA 1984-85
Project: Computer modelling of nucleic acid systems and ion channels,
Host: Dr Enrico Clementi
Post-doctoral Fellow: IBM Research Laboratories, Poughkeepsie (N.Y.) USA 1983
Project: Development and applications computer simulation methodologies and software
using early experimental parallel computer platforms
Host: Dr Enrico Clementi
Post-doctoral Fellow: Daresbury Laboratory, United Kingdom 1982
Project: Development of spin-unrestricted MC-SCF method for J-couplings
Host: Dr Victor R Saunders
Sabbatical: Dalhousie University, Chemistry Department, Halifax, Canada 1993-94, 1995
Projects: solid state NMR and NMR relaxation (Host: Prof. Roderick Wasylishen),
Development of QM/MM methodologies (Host Prof. Russell Boyd),
Statistical Mechanical models and 3D Visualisation (Host Prof. Peter Kusalik)
STIAS Fellow: Wallenberg Stellenbosch Institute of Advanced Study, South Africa 2014
KITPC Fellow: Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics, Beijing, China 2013
Visiting Professor:
University of Cagliari, Department of Chemistry, Sardinia 2008, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2022
Projects: Enzymatic fuel cells, Carbon nanodots, Constrained ionic liquids, and more
Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI), Tokai-Mura, Japan 2002, 2005
Project: Damage and enzymatic repair of DNA
Visiting scientist (last 10 years):
Nanyang Technological University (Singapore); Josef Safarik University, Kosice (Slovakia);
Jilin University, Changchun (China); University of Sao Paulo (Brazil); Calgary University (Canada); University of Namur (Belgium).
Award: 1st prize: “Best business idea from academia”:
Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (KVA) 2006.
SUPERVISION, HOST & ACADEMIC DUTIES
PhD students supervised: 22. Faculty opponent in PhD defences 15 times, PhD committee member
25 times (in Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian, Belgian, South African, Australian & Irish PhD defences). Supervised post-doctoral fellows: 20. Hosted 7 visiting professors. Currently 4 PhD students, 2 post-docs.
RESEARCH AREA, METRICS & OUTPUT
Multi-scale modeling in Materials- & Biosciences and green chemical engineering.
Produced 350+ scientific articles, 20+ Book chapters & review articles. Totally 12650+ citations.
H-index 55 (Google scholar – June 2024), I10-index = 220.
CURRENT MAIN FUNDING
1. European Commission ID: 101086667, ERA Chair 2022-2027
“BioMat4CAST- PetruPoni Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry
Multi-Scale In Silico Laboratory for Complex and Smart Biomaterials” (PI)
2. Swedish Research Council (VR) Project: 2019-03865_VR
"In silico studies of multi-responsive polymers as vectors
for drug/gene delivery and controlled release" (PI)
3. Kempe Foundation Project: SMK21-0011
"Ionic-liquid-powered nanocellulose: From multiscale modelling
to novel sustainable energy resources" (PI)
4. Swedish Research Council (VR) Project: 2020-03899_VR
"Multiscale studies of aqueous neoteric liquids
– ionic liquids and eutectic solvents" (co-PI)
5. Swedish Research Council (VR) Project: 2016-04023_VR
"Multi-scale modelling of interfacial properties for CO2
separation with deep eutectic ionic liquid-based solvents" (co-PI)
6. Swedish Research Council (VR) Project: 2013-04725_VR
"Modelling hard, porous, soft and biological materials
- across spatial and temporal scales: from first-principles
to finite elements." (PI)
7. Ministry of Research and Innovation of Romania,
CNCS - UEFISCDI PN-III-P4-IDPCCF-2016-0050,
within PNCDI III. (co-PI & coordinator)
"5D-nanoP Mimicking living matter mechanisms by
five-dimensional chemistry approaches"
DUTIES TO SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY
Editor of Comprehensive Computational Chemistry
book series for the Molecular Dynamics volume
Peer-reviewer to virtually all journals in own field,
Book reviews: 2, Editorial boards: 3, member in
European networks: 7 (in steering board: 3).
Evaluator of grant proposals for Swedish, EU,
Irish, Israeli, Belgian & Romanian National Science
Councils. Evaluator of HPC resources for Swedish,
Danish and Swiss Supercomputing centers.
Co-founder and first vice-chairman of Theoretical
Chemistry section in Swedish Chemical Society.
CONFERENCES
Organization of conferences & workshops: 22.
Invited speaker at conferences: 20 (last 10 years).
TEACHING
35 years’ teaching experience at all levels of education.
General Chemistry, Physical Chemistry and Molecular
modelling, including high school Chemistry within “Basåret”
program.
LECTURES IN RESEARCH SCHOOLS
Winter/Summer Schools & workshops
Summer School in Molecular Modeling, Pula, Sardinia
2019 & 2020. Second GALAMOST training workshop,
Changchun, China 2019.Molecular Modelling, Petru Poni
Institute,Iasi, Romania, 2019. Multiscale Modeling, Nanjing
Tech University, China 2018. School on Biological Soft Matter,
São Paulo, Brazil 2017. III Escola Brasileira de Modelagem
Molecular 2015. Molecular modeling, Kosice, Slovakia,
2015. Advanced Molecular Simulation Methods in Physical
Sciences, Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics, Beijing
China, 2013. II Escola Brasileira de Modelagem Molecular
2013. Multi-scale modeling, Cagliari (2012), Namur,
Belgium (2011), Changchun, China (2010), Singapore
(2010). CCP5 Summer school, Bath, UK (2006),
SoftSimu2002, Summer graduate school in Helsinki,
Finland (2002), Research School in High Performance
Computing, Ångström Laboratory, Uppsala (1999),
Summer School in Message Passing for MD and MC
methods (1996), Summer School in Biocomputing,
Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm (1997),
Jyväskylä Summer School in Chemistry, Physics
and Mathematics (1992), Graduate School in Laser
Spectroscopy, Moscow State University (1992),
Winter School in Ultrafast Phenomena, Borgafjäll
(1993), Helsinki Winter Schools in Theoretical
Chemistry: Solvation Phenomena (1989),
Quantum Pharmacology (1991), Solvation
Models (1997)
OWN MAIN SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT
Quantum Chemistry
1. A general Coupled Hartree-Fock (CHF) ab initio
perturbation theory program for calculations of
electron-mediatedNMR spin-spin coupling constants
Reference
Aatto Laaksonen, Jozef Kowalewski, and Bo Jönsson.
Intermolecular Nuclear Spin-spin Coupling and Scalar
Relaxation: A Quantum-Mechanical and Statistical
-Mechanical Study for the Aqueous Fluoride Ion.
Chemical Physics Letters, 89, 412-417, (1982).
2. A Spin-unrestricted Multi-Configurational Self-
Consistent-Field program for calculations of NMR
spin-spin coupling constants for triplet unstable
molecules and molecules with multiple bonds.
Reference
Aatto Laaksonen and Victor R. Saunders.
A Spin-unrestricted MC SCF Calculation of Nuclear
Spin-spin Coupling Constants in the HCN Molecule.
Chemical Physics Letters, 95, 375-378, (1983).
Aatto Laaksonen, Jozef Kowalewski, and Victor R. Saunders.
Finite Perturbation MCSCF and CI Calculations of J Coupling
Constants for Molecules with Multiple Bonds.
Chemical Physics, 80, 221-227, (1983).
Molecular Dynamics computer simulations
3. Aatto Laaksonen. Computer simulation
package for liquids and solids with polar
interactions I:McMoldyn/H2O: Aqueous systems.
Computer Physics Communications, 42, 271, (1986).
4. Alexander P. Lyubartsev and Aatto Laaksonen
M.DynaMix - a scalable portable parallel MD
simulation package for arbitrary molecular mixtures.
Computer Physics Communications, 128, 565, (2000).
OWN ENTREPRENEURSHIPS
Did register a consulting company BIO4CAST in
Computer Modelling of Scientific Problems and
data analysis after won the first prize for the best
commercialization idea in the first edition of the
Swedish Royal Academy of Engineering
Mentor4Reseach competition (2006).
The prize money 10000 euro was used to start
the company. The company is currently on hold.
EARLY NON-ACADEMIC WORK
Lease of the tourist area Kullasvuori
with a campsite and cottages in Padasjoki,
Finland and its management (1970).
Owner of a two-floor quarter restaurant and
a hamburger bar in Tampere, Finland (1970-1972).
Younger cook at the restaurant and night club
Ikituuri, Turku, Finland (1972).
Nurse at Beckomberga mental hospital,
Stockholm (1973-1976) during study breaks
Short education was given before the contract.