Lynn M. Walker Elected to Serve as Future Chair of APS DPOLY Division

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (03/24/2026) — CEMS Professor Lynn M. Walker has been elected Vice Chair of the Division of Polymer Physics (DPOLY) of the American Physical Society (APS). She took over the position at the Global Summit Meeting in March 2026 and will serve as Chair-Elect and then Chair of the Division in subsequent years.

DPOLY is one of the oldest divisions of the APS and has strong connections to CEMS, with several members of the CEMS faculty serving in the same role in the past, including Matthew Tirrell, Frank Bates, Tim Lodge, and Mahesh Mahanthappa.

The division connects both academia and industrial researchers in the nearly trillion-dollar global polymers industry. DPOLY has a long history of technical depth and rigor allowing for the development of exciting new materials. Advances in polymer physics will offer solutions to problems in polymer upcycling, recycling, and compatibilization, driving existing materials into  novel application spaces for replacement and sustainability.

Professor Walker has been an active member of APS and DPOLY for most of her career. She was elected Fellow of the APS in 2022 and serves on committees through both the DPOLY and DSOFT divisions of APS.

She is honored to have been elected to the DPOLY executive committee and is looking forward to focusing on the strengths of the Division and broadening its membership and impact. She hopes to develop better mechanisms through programming and activities to connect more strongly with industrial researchers and enhance collaboration between academia, national labs, and industry.

Congratulations on this appointment, Professor Walker. Learn more about her research at the Walker Group website.