Laura C. Motta

Preferred Name: Laura Motta

Assistant Scientist

Marine Chemistry & Geochemistry

Email: laura.motta@whoi.edu

Phone: 508 289 3137

Website: https://www2.whoi.edu/site/mottalab/

Some Info Laura C. Motta is a chemist originally from Colombia. She earned a chemistry degree from Rutgers University in 2013, where she conducted her first mercury experiments with marine phytoplankton in John Reinfelder’s lab. She then pursued a double Ph.D. at the University of Michigan—one in Earth Sciences with Joel Blum, focusing on marine mercury stable isotope biogeochemistry, and one in Theoretical Chemistry with Paul Zimmerman, using quantum chemistry to understand heavy element chemistry. In 2019, Laura moved to France to study relativistic quantum chemistry with Trond Saue as an international predoctoral fellow at CNRS. After completing her Ph.D. in 2020, she moved to South Korea to work with Sae Yun Kwon at POSTECH to study mercury in zooplankton. She later became a postdoctoral fellow with Jochen Autschbach at SUNY Buffalo, where she worked on relativistic quantum chemistry to explore the chemical bonding of organometallic compounds. Since 2023, she has been at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, where she leads the Theoretical Chemistry and Isotope Biogeochemistry Lab. Her research focuses on advancing our fundamental understanding of chemistry, inspired by our oceans.

Education

• Double Ph.D., Earth Sciences and Chemistry, University of Michigan (Double Degree 2019)

• B.A., Chemistry, Rutgers University (2013)

Research Statement

Our research group is interested in questions that span the theoretical chemistry–biological oceanography continuum. We aim to uncover the physical chemistry underlying the interactions of complex organisms with light in marine waters. The interplay between light and chemical reactions in living systems in our oceans adds a fascinating new dimension to our understanding of chemistry. The central theme of our research is the development and application of non-traditional isotope effects, particularly mercury and sulfur, to understand these phenomena.