Christy Haynes

Christy L. Haynes is the Department Head and Distinguished McKnight University Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, a position she has held since July 1, 2023, becoming the first woman to lead the department in its 119-year history. She joined the University of Minnesota faculty in fall 2005 after earning her BS in chemistry with minors in mathematics and Spanish from Macalester College in 1998. Haynes completed her PhD in chemistry at Northwestern University in 2003 under Richard P. Van Duyne, with a thesis on fundamentals and applications of nanoparticle optics and surface-enhanced Raman scattering. She then conducted postdoctoral research as an NIH NRSA fellow in R. Mark Wightman's laboratory at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2005, applying microelectrode amperometry to probe single cell exocytosis. Currently, she also serves as Associate Director of the Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, a board member of the NSF Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, and Associate Editor for Analytical Chemistry, in addition to her recent renewal on the editorial advisory board for the Journal of Physical Chemistry A/B/C.

The Haynes Research Group operates at the interface of analytical, biological, environmental, and nanomaterials chemistry, focusing on applications in ecology, immunology, and toxicology. Research emphasizes sustainable nanotechnology, including nanoparticle-enhanced PFAS phytoremediation, RNAi nanocarriers for potato virus Y management, SERS-based sensors for lipopolysaccharides from foodborne pathogens and reactive oxygen species, carbon dots for plant health impacts, and single-cell measurements of chemical messengers in inflammation-related cells such as blood platelets. Haynes has delivered numerous invited lectures, including at Pacifichem 2025, UCLA, University of Texas at Austin, and Boston University. Her influential publications include 'Present and future of surface-enhanced Raman scattering' (ACS Nano, 2019), 'Nanosphere lithography: a versatile nanofabrication tool for studies of size-dependent nanoparticle optics' (Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 2001), and 'Toxicity of engineered nanoparticles in the environment' (Analytical Chemistry, 2013). She received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2018. The group marked its 20th anniversary in 2025 with alumni events and presentations.

Professional Email: chaynes@umn.edu