ITQ Severo Ochoa Lecture «Atomically precises metal clusters: structure, properties and applications» – Prof. Thomas Bürgi
ITQ Severo Ochoa Lecture
El próximo jueves 24 de julio de 2025 contaremos con el Prof. Thomas Bürgi, department of Physical Chemistry, University of Geneva (Switzerland), quien impartirá la charla “Atomically precises metal clusters: structure, properties and applications”.
- Jueves 24 de julio de 2025 (10h)
- Salón de Actos del ITQ (UPV-CSIC)
“Atomically precises metal clusters: structure, properties and applications”
Chiral nanomaterials have properties that are of interest for applications in chiral technology but also in materials science. In this contribution we will focus on a special class of materials: Monolayer-protected metal clusters. These clusters are atomically precise nanomaterials containing a few to a few hundred metal atoms. Monolayer-protected metal clusters are excellent model systems to understand surface chemical processes and reactivity and they are attractive for applications in sensing, catalysis and medicine. Many of these clusters turn out to be chiral. The chirality arises at different levels, as will be pointed out. These clusters, although stable, turn out to be very dynamic. The latter is evidenced for example by the exchange of metal atoms and ligands between clusters in solution. The dynamic nature of such clusters will be illustrated with several examples.
Prof. Thomas Bürgi
Thomas Bürgi studied chemistry and obtained his PhD in 1995 at the University of Berne (Switzerland). After a postdoc at MIT, he completed his habilitation at ETH Zurich. He became an assistant professor at the University of Neuchâtel (Switzerland) in 2005 and a full professor at the University of Heidelberg in 2008. In 2010, he moved to the University of Geneva, where he is a professor of physical chemistry. His research focuses on the fundamental aspects and applications of chiral metal clusters, chiroptical spectroscopy, and the development of in-situ spectroscopy.
