John Philip Simons FRS FRSC (born 20 April 1934)[1] is a British physical chemist known for his research in photochemistry and photophysics, molecular reaction dynamics and the spectroscopy of biological molecules.
[4] Simons first worked at the University of Birmingham, successively holding positions as an ICI Fellow (1960), lecturer (1961–67),[5] reader (from 1975) and professor of photochemistry from 1979.
[2] The development of a high-speed rotor by Philip Burton Moon at Birmingham allowed Simons to apply this apparatus with crossed molecular beams at supersonic speed to examining the dynamics of photochemical reactions and bimolecular collisions.
[2] He was a pioneer of the use of Doppler-resolved, polarised laser spectroscopy to generate three-dimensional images of molecules colliding (stereodynamics),[3] and is regarded as "one of the founding fathers in the field of 'stereodynamics'".
[2] His later research at Oxford used infrared and ultraviolet laser spectroscopy and quantum chemical calculations to investigate the three-dimensional structure and interactions of carbohydrates, peptides, neurotransmitters and other small biomolecules in the absence of environmental noise.