Functional Materials and Interfaces

Materials Chemistry involves the scientific study including the history of a material (its processing) influences its structure, and thus the material's properties and performance.

About

Functional materials are building blocks of modern society and play a critical role in the evolution of technology. The research in this field is interdisciplinary, providing the intellectual foundation to design, create and understand new forms of matters and their functionalities by revealing the detailed chemistry, structure, process-at-interface and properties/function of solid-state, organic, inorganic or hybrid materials. The application of functional materials and interfaces, from ceramics, nanomaterials, 2D materials, single molecules to polymers, covers designing sustainable new forms of matter with customized properties for applications in energy storage and conversion, future electronics, molecular imaging and sensing, informatics, environmental remediation and smart materials that can sense and respond to their environment.

Groups

3D molecular model showing a complex arrangement of atoms in various colors including blue, red, yellow, and gray, set against a dark background.

Connal Group

At the Connal group we make polymers with applications across a multitude of industries which means we develop new materials for a range of applications.

View the group

Hill Group

Our work covers organometallic chemistry with a particular focus include unsaturated ligands involving metal–carbon multiple bonding.

View the group

Humphrey Group

Our research uses synthesis, spectroscopy, electrochemistry, and computational chemistry to generate new molecular materials with unusual optical properties.

View the group

Liu Group

Our work is mainly concentrated on the interaction amongst synthesis, micro-structure and polarisation-related properties of functional materials.

View the group

Ting Group

Our research primarily focuses on the application of advanced nanoporous materials (such as 3D metal-organic frameworks, zeolites and nanostructured carbons) to important challenges in sustainable energies and environmental technologies.

View the group

Yin Group

The group is interested in the synthesis, understanding and application of nano-to-atomic functional materials

View the group

Projects

Development of high power energy storage materials

This project designs and synthesises AFE materials to enable high-power energy devices. By studying how chemical substitutions affect crystal structure and electrical properties, it aims to optimise energy storage and fast-response performance.

Student intake

Open for Bachelor, Honours, Master students

Electric-field manipulation of molecular qubits (opportunity for joint project with Prof. Nick Cox)

This project aims to design and build an electric-field cell for nanoscale manipulation of molecular qubits using pulsed electric fields. Integrated with EPR spectroscopy, the device will enable precise quantum control, advancing scalable quantum information technologies.

Student intake

Open for Bachelor, Honours, Master students

Emerging advanced 2D materials

This project offers a unique opportunity to understand the world of 2D materials and how their properties can be tuned by their thickness and phase structure. It will enable you to gain valuable experience in materials synthesis and characterization, as well as cutting-edge research in the field of 2D materials.

Student intake

Open for Bachelor, Honours, Master, PhD students

Establishing a physical and chemical methodology for microorganism growth control in 3D bioprinted engineered living materials

This project is centered on developing a new methodology that would allow the prediction of the behaviours of genetically engineered microbes in engineered living materials (ELMs).

Student intake

Open for Bachelor, Honours, Master, PhD students

Functional nanocomposites for sustainable applications

This project enhances the usability of MOFs by developing porous composite films to improve handling, stability, and regeneration compared to raw powders, advancing applications in catalysis, purification, and drug delivery.

Student intake

Open for Bachelor, Honours, Master, PhD students

Liquid organic hydrogen storage

We are offering both computational and experimental projects in this field, focusing their research on (1) catalyst design and assembly, and (2) optimization and restoration of hydrogen carriers (related to organic synthesis).