The Beckman Institute at Caltech is a multi-disciplinary center for research in the chemical and biological sciences, located at and partnering with the

California Institute of Technology The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...

(Caltech) in Pasadena, California,

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

Founding

Founding of the Beckman Institute at Caltech was supported by a major philanthropic gift from the

Arnold Orville Beckman Arnold Orville Beckman (April 10, 1900 – May 18, 2004) was an American chemist, inventor, investor, and philanthropist. While a professor at California Institute of Technology, he founded Beckman Instruments based on his 1934 invention of th ...

and his wife Mabel, through the

Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation Arnold Orville Beckman (April 10, 1900 – May 18, 2004) was an American chemist, inventor, investor, and philanthropist. While a professor at California Institute of Technology, he founded Beckman Instruments based on his 1934 invention of th ...

. Beckman had a long-term relationship with Caltech as a student, teacher and trustee. After discussions with chemists

Harry B. Gray Harry Barkus Gray (born November 14, 1935) is the Arnold O. Beckman Professor of Chemistry at California Institute of Technology. Career Gray received his B.S. in chemistry from Western Kentucky University in 1957. He began his work in inorgan ...

and Peter Dervan, and biologists Eric H. Davidson and

Leroy Hood Leroy "Lee" Edward Hood (born October 10, 1938) is an American biologist who has served on the faculties at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and the University of Washington. Hood has developed ground-breaking scientific instrume ...

, Beckman announced in 1986 that he would donate $50 million to establish the institute and an accompanying endowment. The Beckman Institute at Caltech was chartered by Caltech in 1987.

The institute building was designed by architect

Albert C. Martin, Jr. Albert Carey Martin Jr. (August 3, 1913 – March 30, 2006) was an American architect. He carried on the legacy of his architect father, Albert C. Martin. The Los Angeles firm they established is known as AC Martin Partners.Tony IlliL.A. Archit ...

in a Spanish style with a pool and a central courtyard. It was dedicated on October 26, 1989, and opened in 1990. The building included four levels of laboratory space, libraries, and archives.

Mission

The institute's mission was to foster innovative research in the chemical and biological sciences. A strong emphasis was placed on instrumentation, both in developing new research technologies, and in making facilities available to researchers across the university.

Organizational structure

Four Caltech professors have served as directors of the Beckman Institute: *

, Arnold O. Beckman Professor of Chemistry (1986–2001) *

Barbara Wold Barbara J. Wold is the Bren Professor of Molecular Biology, the principal investigator of the Wold Lab at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and the principal investigator of the Functional Genomics Resource Center at the Beckman ...

, Bren Professor of Molecular Biology (2001–2012) *

David A. Tirrell David A. Tirrell (born 1953) is an American chemist and the Ross McCollum-William H. Corcoran Professor and professor of chemistry and chemical engineering at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). A pioneer in the areas of polymer ...

, Ross McCollum-William H. Corcoran Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering (2012–2018) *

Dennis A. Dougherty Dennis A. Dougherty (born December 4, 1952, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania) is the George Grant Hoag Professor of Chemistry at California Institute of Technology. His research applies physical organic chemistry to systems of biological importance. ...

, George Grant Hoag Professor of Chemistry (2018–Present) Within the institute were nine resource centers, each focusing on a different area of research. A tenth resource center has since been added. , the resource centers and their principal investigators and directors were as follows: * Center for Computational Regulatory Genomics: Eric H. Davidson, Principal investigator; R. Andrew Cameron, Director * CLOVER (CLARITY, Optogenetics, and Vector Engineering Research Center): Viviana Gradinaru, principal investigator; Ben Deverman, director * Functional Genomics Resource Center:

, principal investigator; Brian Williams, director * Laser Resource Center:

, principal investigator;

Jay R. Winkler Jay Richmond Winkler, Ph.D. (b. January 28, 1956) is an American physical chemist, currently director of the Beckman Institute Laser Resource Center at the California Institute of Technology. He has authored over two hundred twenty five articles on ...

, director * Mass Spectrometry Resource Center:

Jack Beauchamp Jack Eugene Beauchamp (February 10, 1932 – September 21, 2007) was an American politician and farmer who served a single term in the Kansas House of Representatives, representing the 14th legislative district of Kansas from 1987 to 1988 as a ...

, principal investigator * Molecular Materials Resource Center: Nate Lewis, principal investigator;

Bruce S. Brunschwig The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been a ...

, director * Molecular Observatory:

Douglas C. Rees Douglas Charles "Doug" Rees (born 1952) is an American biochemist, biophysicist, and structural biologist. Rees graduated from Yale University with a bachelor's degree in 1974 and received a PhD in biophysics from Harvard University in 1980. In ...

, principal investigator; Jens Kaiser, director * Programmable Molecular Technology Center: Niles Pierce, principal investigator; Harry M. T. Choi, director * Proteome Exploration Lab: Raymond Deshaies, principal investigator; Sonja Hess, director * Transmission Electron Microscopy: Grant Jensen, principal investigator; Alasdair McDowall, director

References

{{authority control California Institute of Technology buildings and structures Research institutes in California 1982 establishments in California Science and technology in Greater Los Angeles