Rae Robertson-Anderson

Rae Robertson-Anderson is a Professor of Physics and Biophysics at the University of San Diego. She received her BS in Physics from Georgetown University and her PhD in Physics from the University of California, San Diego, followed by an NIH-funded postdoc in molecular biology at The Scripps Research Institute.

Robertson-Anderson’s research program aims to elucidate the dynamics and mechanics of bio-inspired squishy and living materials. She is a leading expert in engineering biopolymer networks that leverage biological design paradigms to solve fundamental problems in soft matter and active matter physics. Her lab has pioneered novel characterization methods, including optical tweezers microrheology and fluorescence microscopy techniques, to probe these complex systems across decades of spatiotemporal scales. She recently published a comprehensive research book on these topics, Biopolymer Networks.

She has been awarded over $6M to fund her research, including an NSF CAREER Award,  Air Force Young Investigator Award, WM Keck Foundation Research Grant, and NSF DMREF Award. She is a Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS) and was awarded the APS Prize for Faculty Research at an Undergraduate Institution and the Research Corporation Cottrell Scholars STAR Award. She serves on the Executive Committee for the APS Division of Soft Matter and the APS Committee for Public Engagement and hosts a science outreach TikTok channel, @Physics_Mamma, engaging the public in the fascinating physics of everyday life.