R. Benny Gerber

Gerber is known for his work in several areas of theoretical chemistry.He developed a method enabling

accurate calculations of the vibrational spectra of large molecules(systems of up to 200 atoms were recently

treated). These,compared with experiments,determined the 3-D structures of conformers of

numerous biomolecules,most recently of peptides.In a series of studies,Gerber unraveled the molecular

mechanisms of several challenging atmospheric reactions,by using molecular dynamics simulations.Theoretical-

experimental cooperation with Prof.B.J.Finlayson-Pitts was involved,resulting in microscopic understanding

of several atmospherically important reactions at water/air interfaces.Another  contribution was to

novel chemistry of the noble-gas elements.Gerber predicted several molecules of the noble gases,e.g. HXeCCH

and HXeOXeH.Experimental preparation of HXeCCH and related compounds led to the discovery of one of

the largest classes of noble gas molecules,the acetylenic  compounds.Finally,Gerber and coworkers

developed an approximate method for the quantum dynamics in time of many-atom systems.