My research interests span three distinct fields: Main-Group Synthetic Chemistry, Functional Porous Materials, and Chemistry Education Research. Although separately diverse, the frontiers of these fields converge in unique, unexplored spaces within chemistry.
SYNTHETIC MAIN-GROUP AND ORGANOMETALLIC CHEMISTRY
My work in this area centers around using main-group elements to synthesize unique light-emitters for applications in organic-light emitting diodes (OLEDs). Electroluminescence generates triplet excitons and singlet excitons in a 3:1 ratio, respectively. Purely fluorescent emitters, harvesting only singlet excitons, suffer from low efficiencies. Phosphorescent emitters, organometallic species that usually possess iridium or platinum, take advantage of high spin-orbit coupling to allow triplet-state emission. Although these emitters overcome efficiency problems, the abundance and cost of iridium and platinum leave room for improvement. My work looks at introducing Earth abundant, inexpensive main-group elements as alternatives to iridium and platinum. This work is being performed under the supervision of Prof. Thomas Gray at Case Western Reserve University.
CHEMISTRY EDUCATION RESEARCH - LEARNING IN THE TERTIARY LEVEL LAB
My major interest within the field of chemistry education research centers around learning in the laboratory. Where much research proposes incremental changes then measures the effect of those changes, our work looks to develop understanding of what sort of learning does and does not occur in the laboratory environment. To this end, we have used phenomenological approaches, empowering those who live the experience to provide their perspective on the learning phenomena occurring in the laboratory environment. In recent work studying students undergoing a transition from an expository-based traditional lab structure to a more non-traditional lab structure we found that students undergo a change from a state of mindlessness to a state of mindfulness. This has lead us to reexamine previously published data using Langer's Mindfulness Theory as a framework. This work is being performed in collaboration with Prof. Santiago Sandi-Urena of the University of Costa Rica. Beyond learning in the lab, I would like to expand my research to study chemistry graduate student education and how students learn materials and inorganic chemistry.
FUNCTIONAL POROUS MATERIALS
My work in functional porous materials focused on introducing multi-dentate porphyrin-building blocks as linkers in metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent-organic frameworks (COFs), and porous-organic polymers (POPs). Interest in porphyrins arise from there use throughout nature. Beyond my work with porphyrins, a theme of this work was using well-designed and characterized functional porous materials to study the nano-space within the micro-pores of these remarkable materials. I argue, the true power of functional porous has yet to be exploited by scientists. Where the field has progressed significantly over the past 20 years with respect to development of high-performance materials, using porous materials as well-characterized, high-tunable platforms to study molecular behavior within the confines of a microporous system. This work was performed under the supervision of Prof. Shengqian Ma at the University of South Florida.