David Birch
FInstP, FRSE, FRSC, Professor of Photophysics
David Birch is Professor of Photophysics and Head of Biomolecular and Chemical Physics and the Photophysics Group. His present research interests include fluorescence studies of molecular dynamics and structure down to the single molecule level, nanoparticle metrology, protein aggregation, fibril formation and metabolic sensing. He is co-founder of the University's Centre for Molecular Nanometrology and Femtosecond Research Centre (FRC) and has published over 200 journal papers, mainly on photophysics and fluorescence lifetimes. He is principal investigator in the £5M EPSRC Science and Innovation award "Nanometrology for Molecular Science, Medicine and Manufacture."
David was appointed Head of Department in 2004, serving two terms until stepping down in 2010 having led the Department into surplus with the strongest budgetary position in the Faculty of Science. During this period David represented the University on the Executive Committee of the The Scottish Universities Physics Alliance (SUPA) from SUPA's inception and played a key role in helping to attract £48m second round SFC funding to SUPA.
David spent his childhood in the Lancashire village of Burscough and then went on to study physics at the Schuster Laboratories of the University of Manchester where he obtained his PhD for research in molecular photophysics in 1975. After holding a Temporary Lectureship at Manchester he moved into industry working on high-resolution organic mass spectrometry with VG Micromass Ltd. He subsequently moved to Strathclyde as a lecturer and was appointed to a Chair in 1993.
| e: djs.birch 
strath.ac.uk | t: 0141 548 3377/3132 | u: http://bcp.phys.strath.ac.uk/photophysics/
|
Research
David is the Director of Science and Technology of Horiba Jobin Yvon IBH Ltd. In 1977 David co-founded IBH Ltd, one of the first physics spin-off companies in Scotland. From its Glasgow manufacturing base the company has grown to be an international leader in fluorescence lifetime systems. In 2003 IBH joined the Horiba Group, one of the world's largest scientific instrument manufacturers.
Other external appointments include in 1999 the Sir C V Raman Endowment Visiting Chair at the University of Madras, in 2000 a Visiting Professorship at Kyoto Institute of Technology and, from 2002, the Visiting Chair of Applied Physics at the Czech Technical University, Prague. Previously he has held research fellowships from the Royal Society, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, the Nuffield Foundation and the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In 2010 David was appointed European Editor of the Institute of Physics journal Measurement Science and Technology and from 2012 will be its Editor in Chief. He has served on the Editorial Board of SPIE's Journal of Biomedical Optics since its launch in 1995.
Highlights
Research In 2010 published a technique based on intrinsic fluorescence for monitoring the formation of toxic early oligomers of beta-amyloid that lead to the onset of Alzheimer's disease.
In collaboration with John Pickup at Kings College School of Medicine developed novel sensing schemes for monitoring of blood glucose using a glucose binding protein.
Published the first pulsed UV-LED papers for fluorescence lifetime measurements.
Proposed a new interpretation of fluorescence anisotropy decay in silica sols that has led to a new approach to nanoparticle metrology.
Introduced the multiplexing-routing of time-correlated single-photon counting signals from multiple detection channels.
Developed one of the first fluorescence lifetime spectrometers based on two optical monochromators and rf problem-free flashlamp excitation. Both features became standard in the field.
Recent Invited talks include in 2011 an IoP lecture tour of Ireland, in 2010 a Webinar for Spectroscopy Magazine, and in 2009 Light in Life Sciences, Melbourne and Fluorescence in Biology, Mumbai.
Conference organization Chair of Nano Meets Spectroscopy held at NPL in 2011
Launched the Horiba international FluoroFest Workshop Series in 2009.
Permanent Standing Committee Member of the Methods and Applications of Fluorescence Conference series.
Selected publications
Y.N.Zhang, D.J.S.Birch, Y.Chen, "Two-photon excited surface plasmon enhanced energy transfer between DAPI and gold nanoparticles: Opportunities in intra-cellular imaging and sensing", Appl. Phys. Lett. 99, 103701 (2011) doi: 10.1063/1.3633066
J.U.Sutter, D.J.S.Birch, O.J.Rolinski, "The effect of intensity of excitation on CdSe/ZnS quantum dots: Opportunities in luminescence sensing", Appl. Phys. Lett. 98, 021108 (2011) doi: 10.1063/1.3534784
T.Saxl, F.Khan, M.Ferla, D.J.S.Birch, J.Pickup, "A fluorescence lifetime-based fibre-optic glucose sensor using glucose/galactose-binding protein", Analyst 136, 968-972 (2011) doi: 10.1039/c0an00430h
D.J.S.Birch, "Fluorescence detections and directions", Meas. Sci. Technol. 22, 052002 (2011) doi: 10.1088/0957-0233/22/5/052002
O.J.Rolinski, M.Amaro, D.J.S.Birch, "Early detection of amyloid aggregation using intrinsic fluorescence", Biosens. Bioelectron. 25, 2249-2252 (2010) doi: 10.1016/j.bios.2010.03.005
O.J.Rolinski, K.Scobie, D.J.S.Birch, "Protein fluorescence decay: A gamma function description of thermally induced interconversion of amino acid rotamers", Phys. Rev. E 79, 050901 (2009) doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.79.050901
A.M.Macmillan, D.Panek, C.D.McGuinness, J.C.Pickup, D.Graham, W.E.Smith, D.J.S.Birch, J.Karolin, "Improved biocompatibility of protein encapsulation in sol-gel materials", J. Sol-Gel Sci. Technol. 49, 380-384 (2009) doi: 10.1007/s10971-008-1883-0
K.Apperson, J.Karolin, R.W.Martin, D.J.S.Birch, "Nanoparticle metrology standards based on the time-resolved fluorescence anisotropy of silica colloids", Meas. Sci. Technol. 20, 025310 (2009) doi: 10.1088/0957-0233/20/2/025310
O.J.Rolinski, D.J.S.Birch, "Nonextensive kinetics of fluorescence resonance energy transfer", J. Chem. Phys. 129, 144507 (2008) doi: 10.1063/1.2990651
O.J.Rolinski, A.Martin, D.J.S.Birch, "Human serum albumin and quercetin interactions monitored by time-resolved fluorescence: evidence for enhanced discrete rotamer conformations", J. Biomed. Opt. 12, 034013 (2007) doi: 10.1117/1.2747623
A.Cleary, J.Karolin, D.J.S.Birch, "pH tracking of silica hydrogel nanoparticle growth", Appl. Phys. Lett. 89, 113125 (2006) doi: 10.1063/1.2349838
J.C.Pickup, F.Hussain, N.D.Evans, O.J.Rolinski, D.J.S.Birch, "Fluorescence-based glucose sensors", Biosens. Bioelectron. 20, 2555-2565 (2005) doi: 10.1016/j.bios.2004.10.002
Current Grants
, , , , ,
(-) £
Title:
