Rate My Professor Robert Walker

Robert Walker is Professor and Department Head of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Montana State University, a position he assumed on July 1, 2025, after joining the faculty in 2009. Previously, he held faculty positions at the University of Maryland, College Park for over 25 years. Walker earned his B.A. in Chemistry from Dartmouth College in 1990, graduating cum laude with High Honors in Chemistry under advisor Professor Joe Belbruno. He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1995, with a thesis titled 'Molecular propellers: Internal Rotation in Substituted Toluene Molecules' advised by Professor Jim Weisshaar. From 1995 to 1998, he conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Oregon with Professor Geri Richmond, developing nonlinear optical studies of lipids adsorbed to liquid/liquid interfaces. Trained initially as a gas-phase molecular beam spectroscopist, Walker's career has focused on optical spectroscopies to examine how surfaces alter properties of adjacent liquids.

Walker's research employs second harmonic generation (SHG) and vibrational sum frequency generation (VSFG) to investigate molecular organization and reactivity at solid/liquid, liquid/liquid, and liquid/vapor interfaces, alongside Raman microscopy for high-temperature electrocatalytic surfaces in solid oxide fuel cells operating at or above 1000 K with fuels such as methane, methanol, hydrogen, and higher hydrocarbons. He directs the Montana University System Materials Science Graduate Program, established in 2013 under his leadership as state director for a decade, and serves as Project Director for the NSF EPSCoR RII Track 1 SMART FIRES program. Walker has authored over 130 peer-reviewed publications, including 'Nonlinear Optical Responses from Au Surfaces as a Function of Temperature and Atmospheric Composition' (J. Phys. Chem. C, 2022), 'Carbon Nanoparticle-Induced Changes to Lipid Monolayer Structure at Water-Air Interfaces' (J. Phys. Chem. B, 2022), and 'L-Phenylalanine Partitioning Mechanisms in Model Biological Membranes' (J. Phys. Chem., 2022). He has mentored over 30 Ph.D. graduates, with more than 90% of his papers featuring graduate or undergraduate co-authors, and sustains annual research expenditures exceeding $500,000. His honors include the 2021 Fox Faculty Award for Achievement in Teaching, Research, Scholarship, Creativity, and Mentoring; 2016 Provost's Award for Graduate Research/Creative Mentoring; 2023 College of Letters and Science Distinguished Professor; NSF CAREER Award; and AAAS Fellow status. Walker mentors junior faculty, leads multidisciplinary teams, and bolsters science and engineering initiatives across Montana's university system.