We use and develop techniques with broad applicability, which allows us to investigate problems across a wide range of chemical disciplines. Of particular interest currently are:
Atmospheric new particle formation - The formation and growth of particles from trace vapors in the atmosphere is a major source of uncertainty in climate simulations. We are interested in understanding the chemical mechanisms of atmospheric new particle formation and the intermolecular interactions governing this process, with the goal of aiding the development of more accurate treatments that could be included in global climate models.
Metal nanocluster electronic structure - Metal nanoclusters are small nanoparticles that exhibit desirable features of both nanoparticles and molecules: they are tunable by size, shape, doping, and ligand chemistry, but they can sometimes be purified such that bulk quantities of identical nanoclusters can be synthesized. We are working to understand how to synthetically tune their electronic and optical properties to optimize their utility in applications from catalysis to sensing.
Carbon dioxide reduction by nanoclusters - Metal nanoclusters have shown the ability to catalyze CO2 electroreduction, but the mechanism by which they accomplish this is unclear and the pathway to optimizing their performance is unknown. We are tackling the activation of CO2 at the surface of nanoclusters and learning the rules by which their catalytic performance can be manipulated synthetically.
Inner-sphere dynamics in bioinorganic complexes - Through collaborations, we are using our unique tools to understand solvation and reactivity in the inner sphere of complexes for diagnostic imaging or metalloproteins.
Photocatalytic mechanisms - We are working with collaborators to validate mechanisms driving photocatalytic organic reactions.
Instrumentation and experiment development - We are constantly creating and evolving new experimental tools to gain chemical insight into complex molecular processes!