Physics of Life
  Soft and Living Matter Group

I, Apratim Chatterji, am a Soft Matter physicist.  I use statistical physics  to develop an understanding of the principles involved in the self-organization / self-assembly in typical soft matter  systems, where the building blocks are micron to nano-meter sized particles.  We investigate the emergent  patterns/structures  formed due to interaction between macromolecules suspended in a fluid. Suspended macro-molecules do Brownian motion and thereby explore different configurations (micro-states) as they interact.

My recent work  uses physics to understand  self emergent shape &structure  formation and organization within the living cell, particularly the DNA.  DNA is a nonliving large molecule within a living cell, and yet somehow the nonliving molecules coordinate amongst themselves in such a  predictable and timely manner. How ??

Does some of the processes use stochastic (random) forces e.g. Brownian motion and entropy to actually organize themselves?  What are the underlying physics principles? The bigger question, of course, is : How do physics processes (structure and dynamics) enable the cell  to become "alive" ??

I use computer simulations to  explore and model  the systems of my interest.
I am a faculty at Dept. of Physics, IISER Pune, India.   My CV.

Why are physicists  investigating self-organization & dynamics inside the living cell? 
: refer  American Physical Society  (APS) link