My group utilizes laser spectroscopy techniques to investigate the dynamics of charge carriers (electrons and holes) within semiconductor nanomaterials and of bimolecular chemical reactions. While these directions may appear drastically diverse, the unifying theme is to characterize the energetics and dynamics of these systems at the most basic level in order to develop better understandings … Continued
A wide variety of diseases are results of deficient or abnormal protein-lipid interactions. The elucidation of the interactions between specific proteins and lipids and the ability to examine and manipulate biomembranes that mimic real-life systems hold the key to a better understanding of these diseases. Using model membrane systems, along with various microscopy, x-ray, and … Continued
Enzymes control reaction selectivity via substrate binding to enable biosynthetic sequences in a cellular environment. The range of substrates and reactions compatible with known enzymes, however, is limited relative to those developed by chemists. It is as if enzymes act as hands to link molecules together like Lego bricks, but only certain bricks and linkages … Continued
My group has demonstrated and developed femtosecond two dimensional Fourier transform spectroscopy as the optical analog of two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance. This technique has provided new windows into vibrational motions, electronic motions, and their coupling. Our group currently uses two-dimensional spectroscopy to study the fast electronic and vibrational motions required for efficient electronic processes in … Continued
My research group focuses on three main areas of materials chemistry: 1) The development of conducting polymer nanofibers with applications in sensors, flash welding, actuators and membrane separations; 2) New synthetic routes to carbon-based materials focusing on energy storage including supercapacitors; and 3) Solid-state routes to refractory materials with an emphasis on superhard metal borides.
Our most significant research accomplishments have involved using resonance Raman spectroscopy to learn about the structure and dynamics of molecular excited electronic states. This includes experimental methods for measuring absolute resonance Raman cross-sections as well as computational methods for carrying out efficient simulations of resonance Raman and associated spectroscopic observables using a time-domain formulation of … Continued
The goal of my research program is to develop a microscopic understanding of how coupled electronic, vibrational, and solvent/bath degrees of freedom optimize charge and energy transfer pathways in molecular photochemistry. The direct time-dependent visualization of charge delocalization is a crucial first step in understanding charge and energy transfer and subsequently designing molecules and materials … Continued
My work on polyketide antibiotic biosynthetic mechanisms has led to new methods for engineering enzymatic assembly lines to make novel antibiotics. My collaborators and I have also studied the molecular basis of celiac disease with an eye toward developing non-dietary therapies for this widespread but neglected autoimmune disorder.
My group has discovered a series of fundamentally and practically important chemical reactions and defined several key principles in catalytic chemistry. Through the discovery and development of chiral Schiff base complexes of main group and transition metals and of novel organic catalysts, we have devised effective methods for a wide variety of stereoselective catalytic oxidative, … Continued
My research area is computational and theoretical chemistry. We focus on electronic structure theory, as well as efficient algorithms and software for using electronic structure methods to simulate chemistry on computers. Specific topics include density functional theory, wave function theory for strong correlations in ground and excited states, and analysis of intra- and inter-molecular interactions. … Continued