Dr. Daphna Shimon

Dr. Daphna Shimon
Dr. Daphna Shimon
Faculty Scholar
2021-2022 Cohort
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Daphna Shimon completed her PhD at the Weizmann Institute of Science in the Department of Chemical Physics. She specializes in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), the tool of choice for chemists probing molecular identity and structure. Her doctorate made an important contribution to contemporary understanding of the operating mechanism of dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP), a method of enhancing the NMR signal.

Dr. Shimon then spent several years, including postdocs at Dartmouth and Washington University, exploring different aspects of DNP and NMR.

Dr. Shimon’s lab at Hebrew University, in the Institute of Chemistry, uses NMR, as well as new DNP tools and techniques, to study small molecules on heterogeneous surfaces of porous materials. She and her researchers study several processes: reactions that take place during CO2 sequestration in rocks and minerals for long term storage of CO2, stone consolidation and protection using nanoparticles to stop stone buildings and statues from crumbling or cracking, and examining the residual organic molecules trapped inside the pores of clay pottery walls for archaeological chemistry purposes.

While at Weizmann, Dr. Shimon was a founding member of the Women in Chemistry Forum. She is proud to serve as a role model in her position at The Hebrew University and ensure that students encounter more female faculty members in physical chemistry.