Prof. Dr. Timothy Ian Eglinton

Curriculum Vitae

Timothy Eglinton has been Professor of Biogeoscience within the Geological Institute at ETH Zurich since July 2010. Tim Eglinton obtained his Bachelor's degree from Plymouth Polytechnic in 1982 and then completed Masters and doctoral degrees at the University of Newcastle in 1983 and 1988, respectively. He then undertook postdoctoral research at Delft Technical University and Oslo University before joining the Scientific Staff in the Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry (MC&G) at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) in 1990. Tim Eglinton remained at WHOI until 2010 as an Assistant, Associate and Senior Scientist, and served as the Chair of the MC&G Department between 2007 and 2010.

Research area

Tim Eglinton's research is focussed on understanding of the processes that govern the Earth's carbon cycle from the molecular level to the global scale, and on the legacy of past biological activity and environmental conditions contained in organic signatures preserved in the geologic record. This is centered on a “source-to-sink” approach that examines the production, transport, transformation and burial of terrestrial and marine biospheric organic materials at the Earth surface over a range of spatial and temporal scales. Current emphasis is placed on better understanding basin-scale organic matter dynamics within terrestrial and oceanic realms, with a focus on modern-day carbon cycle processes, and on variability in the carbon cycle during the Late Quaternary. The development and application of new analytical approaches represents a key component of Tim Eglinton's research activities, as are field-based programs both in continental and marine settings.