Prof. Todd Dawson (tdawson@berkeley.edu), the Lab Director, has been working with stable isotopes for more than 25 years. He has helped developed a wide range new methods and sampling approaches in the areas of plant ecology, physiology, ecosystem biogeochemistry and ecohydrology. Much of the research he has lead or collaborated on has been focused on plants, water and environmental factors that influence plant performance and how isotope tools can be applied in novel ways to investigate plant-environment interactions. He is a co-founder of the training course in the application of stable isotopes in ecology and the biogeosciences that is taught each summer at the University of Utah (called “IsoCamp”) and the former director of the Biogeosphere-Atmosphere-Stable-Isotope-Network (BASIN), an NSF-sponsored working group dedicated to advancing the knowledge and application of isotope information in the biological, atmospheric and ecosystem sciences. He also teaches several courses at UC Berkeley dedicated to the theory, concepts and application of isotopes in the natural sciences. An author of over 175 peer-reviewed publications and 5 co-edited books, many focused on stable isotopes, he continues to be deeply involved in advancing understanding in the broad area of isotope science.
Dr. Wenbo Yang (stableisotopes@berkeley.edu) is the manager of the lab. He operates, maintains, troubleshoots and repairs mass spectrometers and peripheral devices/systems on a daily basis. He has been working in and managing stable isotope laboratories and conducting stable isotopes (H, C, N, O and S) and trace element applications since obtaining his bachelor’s degree. Over the years, he has generated innovative research ideas and has developed, built and managed analytical laboratories and has trained many lab users. He also enjoys helping to develop new analytical techniques based on the needs of different research projects. Wenbo has also participated in both independent and cooperative team research and is happy to provide advice on sample preparation, analytical methods and data interpretation.
Dr. Stefania Mambelli (mambelli@berkeley.edu) joined the Department of Integrative Biology and the Center for Stable Isotope Biogeochemistry in January 2000. As an associate scientist and member of the lab she is responsible for general lab management and operations, scheduling sample analysis, elemental analyzer maintenance, solid sample analysis, water analysis by IRIS, data processing, and billing. She is also involved in tutoring and training graduate and undergraduate students in Biology, Ecology and the Environmental Sciences on aspects of stable isotope techniques and use of stable isotope mass spectrometry. She is also a co-instructor of regular stable isotope courses taught at UC Berkeley. Her own research is focused on plant ecophysiological traits in relation to limiting resources and biogeochemical cycles, and on the role of stable isotope variation in ecological and environmental research.
Arthur Quilau and Joe Magliaro (bds_recharge@berkeley.edu) are responsible for financial matters and invoice processing.
Karely Rosales is an UCB undergraduate student who works in the lab part-time. She is in charge of standards and samples preparation, and general lab maintenance.