Dr Arzu Çolak

Arzu Çolak has conducted independent research as an Assistant Professor since July 2020 at the Physics Department of Clarkson University (USA) in the field of surface and interface physics with scanning probe microscopy-based methods.

Her main research interests include surface and interface physics, nanotribology, nanomechanics, mechanobiology and chemical mechanical planarization. Some of her most recent research involves the in situ imaging of Candida albicans hyphal growth, measuring the mechanical forces via AFM applied by a molecular motor while turning due to external stimuli, as well as assisting in research using AFM to scan the surface topography and mechanical properties of the outer and inner surfaces of eggshells.

Dr Arzu Çolak

Recent AFM-related papers:

• Zheng, Y., Han, M. K. L., Zhao, R., Blass, J., Zhang, J., Zhou, D. W., Colard-Itté, J-R., Dattler, D., Çolak, A., Hoth, M., García, A. J., Qu, B., Bennewitz, R., Giuseppone, N. and del Campo, A. (2021). ‘Optoregulated force application to cellular receptors using molecular motors’. Nature Communications, 12(3580).

• Zang, L-S., Chen, Y-M., Koc-Bilican, B., Bilican, I., Sakir, M., Wait, J., Çolak, A., Karaduman, T., Ceylan, A., Ali, A., Elbuken, C., Onses, M. S. and Kaya, M. (2021). ‘From bio-waste to biomaterials: The eggshells of Chinese oak silkworm as templates for SERS-active surfaces’. Chemical Engineering Journal, 426(131874).

• Çolak, A., Ikeh, M. A. C., Nobile, C. J. and Baykara, M. Z. (2020). ‘In Situ Imaging of Candida albicans Hyphal Growth via Atomic Force Microscopy’. mSphere, 5(6).

Biography: Arzu completed a BSc in Physics at Istanbul University (Turkey) followed by an MSc in Physics at Boğaziçi University (Turkey). Subsequently, she completed a PhD in Physics at University of Twente (Netherlands) in 2013, supervised by Prof. Harold J. W. Zandvliet and Prof. Bene Poelsema, where Arzu studied the factors for adhesion force magnitudes between surfaces using AFM to facilitate development of new lithography technologies and tools.

She then worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the Université Pierre et Marie Curie (France) supervised by Prof. Marie-Paule Pileni. Here Arzu investigated the mechanical properties of 3D self-assembled metal nanocrystals as candidates for flexible components of next-generation electronics, circuits, and devices.

She then investigated the mechanical properties of synthetic interpenetrating network hydrogels at the length scale of cell mechanosensing using AFM-based single-molecule force microscopy at the Nanotribology research group of the INM – Leibniz Institute for New Materials. Lastly, Arzu worked at University of California Merced (USA) as a postdoctoral researcher using AFM to characterise the structure and mechanics of early-stage biofilm formation of Candida albicans.

Twitter: @Rzooo

Website(s): Arzu Colak | Clarkson University, www.psi-afm-lab.com

---

Are you a woman conducting AFM research or know of someone you would like to nominate to be featured in our next #WomenInAFM campaign? Contact us at community@nunano.com!

Also, check out our previous March 2021 Women in AFM blog post to read about more researchers. Why are we celebrating women in AFM? — NuNano AFM Probes