R. Graham Cooks


Robert Graham Cooks is the Henry Bohn Hass Distinguished Professor of Chemistry in the Aston Laboratory of Mass Spectrometry at Purdue University. He is an ISI Highly Cited Chemist, with over 1,000 publications and an H-index of 94.

Education

Cooks received a bachelor of science and master of science degrees from the University of Natal in South Africa in 1961 and 1963, respectively. He received a Ph.D. from the University of Natal in 1965 and a second Ph.D. from Cambridge University in 1967.

Research interests

Research in Cooks' laboratory has contributed to a diverse assortment of areas within mass spectrometry, ranging from fundamental research to instrument and method development to applications. Cooks' research interests over the course of his career have included the following : the study of gas-phase ion chemistry ; early developments in tandem mass spectrometry ; Mass-Analyzed Ion Kinetic Energy Spectrometry ; kinetic isotope effects; the Kinetic Method for thermochemical determinations; Angle-Resolved Mass Spectrometry; Energy-Resolved Mass Spectrometry ; chiral analysis; ion activation/dissociation processes, surface-induced dissociation, and photodissociation ); desorption/ionization processes, laser desorption ionization, and desorption electrospray ionization ); preparative mass spectrometry ; ionization techniques, Low Temperature Plasma ; the development of quadrupole ion traps and related technologies, and the Rectilinear Ion Trap ; trapped ion motion phenomena and simulations; Membrane Introduction Mass Spectrometry ; abiogenisis via homochirality; chemical imaging; the development of portable mass spectrometers or miniature mass spectrometers and related technologies.

Awards and Fellowships