Caltech Library News

Kuppermann papers collection guide online

Aron Kuppermann was born in São Paulo, Brazil on May 6, 1926. He received his BS in Chemical Engineering in 1948, and another in Civil Engineering in 1952, both from the University of São Paulo.

Aron Kuppermann standing in his lab with a piece of equipment called a molecular beam machine, 1974 (photo by Floyd Clark). Photo ID Kuppermann, Aron_74-217-1-25

In 1955 he received his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from the University of Notre Dame. From 1955 to 1963 he taught at the University of Illinois. He was appointed professor of Physical Chemistry at the California Institute of Technology in 1963, where he spent the rest of his academic career until his retirement in 2010. Kuppermann was a leader in the field of computational chemistry and was best known for his theoretical studies of the dynamics of chemical reactions. During his many years at Caltech (1963-2011), Kuppermann also worked as a consultant for the World Bank on projects of Science and Technology in Brazil, China, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, and Uganda from 1983 to 2005. His papers, organized in 108 archival boxes, reflect his avid interest in both scientific research and teaching. -NL