Fused polycyclic scaffolds with three-dimensional complexity from an array of stereocenters compose the core structures of countless natural product families with a variety of desirable biological activity. The development of synthetic methods and strategies to afford rapid access to these structures is essential to expose a wealth of untapped biological...
Organic Photovoltaic (OPV) materials are of great interest as a low-cost material the purposes of achieving wide spread, solar energy adoption. However, a limiting factor in materials development is the ability to proactively determine the active layer thin film morphology that largely informs device performance. Thus, understanding how materials design...
Organic Photovoltaic (OPV) materials are of great interest as a low-cost material the purposes of achieving wide spread, solar energy adoption. However, a limiting factor in materials development is the ability to proactively determine the active layer thin film morphology that largely informs device performance. Thus, understanding how materials design...
Noncentrosymmetry (NCS) is a requirement for many properties such as piezoelectricity, pyroelectricity, and nonlinear optical activity like second harmonic generation which are desirable for a variety of commercial applications. One method which has been employed to successfully synthesize NCS compounds utilizes acentric anionic groups, such as oxyfluoride metal complexes, as...
High-pressure and -temperature synthesis is a powerful tool for synthesizing new intermetallic compounds that cannot be formed using traditional solid-state syntheses. Such metastable compounds can exhibit unrivaled structural complexity, unique bonding, and unusual properties. In the simplest case, there are many binary systems in which no intermetallic compounds are known....
The expanding use of nanomaterials in consumer products challenges scientists to understand the impact of these materials before their inevitable release into the environment. In the same way that the widespread use of DDT and asbestos has caused unforeseen negative impacts on both the environment and on human health, the...
Photovoltaic technology can help meet the exploding world energy demand in a sustainable and environmentally friendly way. Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) are especially attractive because they can be constructed with low-cost organic content and are amenable to high-throughput large-scale fabrication techniques. Synthetic modification of organic semiconductors has paved way for the...
My research interests, which span organic, inorganic, physical and biochemistry, have focused broadly on photo-, magneto- and redox-active molecules, especially those with potential applications in organic photovoltaics, spintronics and electronics. My research under the joint supervision of Professor Wasielewski and Professor Fraser Stoddart has concentrated upon understanding electronic and magnetic...
Starting materials for natural products, ideally synthesized using low-cost, highly active and selective catalysts, are of great interest to the pharmaceutical industry. Relevant reactions include the synthesis of 1,2-dihydropyridines, reduction of ketones/aldehydes, cleavage of esters, and reduction of amides to amines. Hydroelementation is an important catalytic process that involves H-E...
The electronic spin state (S) of metal ions is fundamental to the performance of magnets, protein cofactors, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents. The ability to manipulate the spin state of transition metals allows for the development of advanced materials with emergent properties. This following chapters will introduce two...