Research Research Areas Supramolecular Chemistry toc About Supramolecular chemistry involves the organized arrangement of molecules via the control and manipulation of intermolecular interactions. It includes host-guest chemistry, self-assembly, and systems chemistry, and has applications in materials chemistry and in biochemical systems. It is characterized by weak intermolecular interactions such as hydrogen bonding, pi-pi interactions, electrostatic interactions, and metal coordination, and includes molecular folding, molecular recognition, and mechanically-interlocked assemblies. Groups 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 Preston Group The Preston group works on supramolecular systems in solution. We develop architectures from metal ions and organic ligands, and then explore their behaviour. View the group Sherburn Group Our research program involves the design of sequences of cycloaddition reactions, free radical reactions and transition metal-mediated reactions View the group White Group Our research focuses on supramolecular chemistry – the chemistry of non-covalent interactions such as hydrogen bonding, halogen bonding and coordination bonds. View the group Projects Big and Small Chains of Carbon We are studying compounds in which a single atom of carbon is held between two metal centres LnM=C=MLn. In most cases the M=C=M spine is linear but we have recently isolated the first examples where the carbon is bent and displays nucleophilic character. Read more Student intake Open for Honours, Master, PhD, Summer scholar students Read more Catenanes and/or rotaxanes This project will involve a reasonable amount of organic synthesis, as well as some host-guest binding studies and potentially some X-ray crystallography. Read more Student intake Open for Honours, Master, PhD, Summer scholar students Read more Cool cages for coordination chemistry We hope that these will give interesting catalytic properties as we will be able to incorporate coordinatively unsaturated metal ions next to a well-defined 3D binding pocket. This will be studied in collaboration with the Colebatch group. Read more Student intake Open for Honours, Master, PhD, Summer scholar students Read more Hydrogen bonded organic frameworks This project involves designing and developing new recognition motifs to assemble H-bonded frameworks, and using different interactions such as halogen bonding and chalcogen bonding to prepare frameworks. Read more Student intake Open for Honours, Master, PhD, Summer scholar students Read more Metallo-catenanes We aim to develop these as molecular machines, switching between forms to turn on or off their capacity to interact, sense, and/or catalytically transform target molecules. Read more Student intake Open for Honours, Master, PhD, Summer scholar students Read more Metallo-foldamers We have projects in developing systems from them towards the following goals: 1. Photophysical applications: arranging photophysically active groups close in space for FRET, donor-acceptor, or upconversion events 2. Binding and transport of anions and more... Read more Student intake Open for Honours, Master, PhD, Summer scholar students Read more Load more Members Academic staff Prof. Luke Connal HDR ConvenorAssociate Director Prof. Anthony Hill Professor Prof. Michael Sherburn Associate Director (Education)Professor A/ Prof. Nicholas White Associate ProfessorAustralian Research Council Future Fellow Articles Congratulations Nick White - ARC Future Fellowship Congratulations to Dr Nick White who has been awarded an ARC Future Fellowship. This is fantastic news, and a tribute to all of Nick’s hard work and achievements in supramolecular chemistry. Read the article toc
