Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Most biomolecular events are too small and too fast to observe with sufficient detail using experimental techniques alone.  Computer simulations can be of tremendous help to improve our understanding of biomolecular systems. Using the laws of physics (think “F = ma”), we can make atomic resolution “movies” of molecular motions that can help us build our intuition and generate new hypotheses that can be tested by experiment.

At MSU we have a strong focus on molecular dynamics simulations, including both the development of new powerful methods and techniques, as well as their application to a wide range of projects. To enable this, MSU has the High Performance Computing Center (HPCC), a large, campus-wide cluster of compute resources with both CPU and GPU nodes. This is administered by the Institute for Cyber-Enabled Research (ICER).