Modern biology is driven by the combination of several critical technologies: Elaborate in vitro reconstitutions of biomolecular systems, an ever increasing arsenal of methodologies to perform dynamic, quantitative and structural studies not only in vitro but up to live cells and entire organisms, as well as the theoretical synthesis of the resulting data towards molecular and even system-wide modeling.

The field of Biophysics encompasses the development and application of experimental and theoretical methodologies with molecular resolution from single-molecules to whole organisms. In recent years, biophysics and structural biology have been at the forefront of scientific progress, with novel developments in cryo electron-microscopy (Nobel Prize 2017 for Jacques Dubochet, UNIL, and colleagues) and single-molecule and super-resolution imaging (Nobel Prize 2014 for Stefan W. Hell and colleagues).

Switzerland has a long tradition for biophysics and structural biology and the Swiss Universities host a vibrant community of research groups working on different aspects of biophysical research. With the founding of a new LS² section in Biophysics, we aim to provide new avenues for networking, knowledge transfer and intellectual exchange for biophysicists and researchers working in related fields in Switzerland.

The LS² section Biophysics was founded in 2019, by integrating former Swiss Biophysical Society, with aim to elevate the profile of Biophysics in Switzerland and to strengthen the vibrant Biophysics community in Switzerland. The first Section event was Biophysics symposium at the FEBS3+ LS² Annual Meeting 2020 in Zürich.