Welcome to the Kisley Lab
Materials at the ultimate concentration limit
We are a team of physicists, chemists, and engineers driven by curiosity to understand the world at the limit of a single molecule.
We study materials using nanoscale microscopy. We have the goal to inspire materials design through the following aims:
1) Approach medical & industrial material problems with a molecular, quantitative perspective using single molecule spectroscopy. Single molecule spectroscopy accesses heterogeneity hidden in traditional ensemble measurements.
2) Advance the single molecule materials field towards more complex, realistic conditions. We have a long-term vision of connecting the molecular results to the macroscale material performance.
3) Develop new microscopies that achieve a full physicochemical picture of molecular behavior. This includes how molecules adsorb, diffuse, and fold over space, time, and temperature.
Please check out our website for more details!
Research & Discoveries
The Kisley Lab images molecules interacting with bio/soft/metal materials using optical microscopy.
We track how molecules stick, move, react, or change conformation over space, time, and application of mechanical force.
New High-Resolution Microscopy Methods
Protein Dynamics in the Extracellular Matrix
How do proteins behave outside the cell?
Diffusion and Adsorption of Analytes in Separation Materials
Designing the most challenging separations from the bottom-up
Imaging Corrosion, One Redox Reaction at a Time
Detecting & understanding rust right when it starts
Reaching smaller scales by stretching materials
Learn more about our research:
Notable News
September 2026
The NIH grant will provide support over five years to continue our biophysics research to develop super-resolution microscopy methods to understand the extracellular matrix.
November 2026
Additive manufacturing promises the ability to produce highly complex parts on demand with minimal waste. But what if you print a metal part - will it be more or less prone to corrosion? Check out our latest manuscript in ACS Applied Engineering Materials studying 3D printed stainless steel corrosion using fluorescence. Congratulations to lab members Hongchu and Zechariah on their work, along with our collaborator Prof. Laura Brukman in CWRU's Materials Science department.
Group attends Biophysical Society Meeting
February 2026
The Kisley Lab took over the BPS March Meeting in San Francisco! The group had several posters & talks, Anshuman received a travel award, and we even made a side trip to visit our collaborators in Santa Cruz.
Contact Us
Rockefeller Bldg.
2076 Adelbert Rd.
Cleveland, OH 44106-7079
216-368-2118
