Courses Taught
Physical Chemistry (CHEM 3141, 3142)
Survey of Physical Chemistry (CHEM 2141)
Introduction to General, Organic, and Biochemistry (CHEM 1203, 1204)
Research Focus
X-ray Crystallography: Determination of molecular structures by X-ray crystallographic methods.
The technique of single-crystal X-ray crystallography is used to determine the detailed molecular structure of chemical compounds. Because this is a completely general method, it can be applied to almost any compound of chemical interest, and is thus an important tool in many different areas of research. The determination of a substance’s structure by X-ray methods involves several steps, including 1) preparation of suitable crystals for study, 2) preliminary X-ray investigation for the determination of crystal quality and lattice type, 3) collection of high accuracy intensity data on an automated X-ray diffractometer, and 4) reduction and analysis of the data utilizing high-speed computers.
Structure determinations are carried out on compounds of interest in a variety of research endeavors; the particular compounds studied depend on the immediate research interests of faculty colleagues. Compounds recently studied include templates for the synthesis of chiral organic compounds, molecular weight standards for diffusion-ordered NMR, tethers for molecular pincers, and molecular pincers.