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Michael E. HagermanProfessor & Chair of Chemistry |
Education:
B.S. Chemistry, North Central College, 1991Ph.D. Inorganic Chemistry, Northwestern University, 1995
Courses:
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CHM 101 Introductory Chemistry I |
CHM 260 Inorganic Chemistry |
Research Interests:
My general research interests focus on inorganic and materials chemistry applied to the synthesis and extensive characterization of inorganic/organic nanocomposites for applications in heterogeneous catalysis, chemical sensing, conductive assemblies, interconnects, photonics and solar cells. Our research group explores the chemical factors that control the inner architecture of solids and exploits these factors to rationally design and fabricate advanced nanomaterials. Of particular interest are the inclusion of organic nonlinear optical dyes, laser dyes, and polymers within hectorite and Laponite clay thin films and mesoporous hosts such as MCM-41. Laponite nanoparticles provide versatile inorganic scaffolds as robust, transparent films can be coated onto various substrates through facile self-assembly from the aqueous phase. The inner architectures of these advanced materials can be selectively tuned using embedded cationic surfactants to optimize the inclusion, aggregation and organization of semiconductor nanoclusters (tailored CdSe nanoparticles) and/or organic chromophores such as rhodamine 6G leading to advanced nanocomposites with novel photophysical properties. Characterization methods have included: uv/vis, infrared and fluorescence spectroscopies, thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, scanning electron microsocopy, optical microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, powder X-ray diffraction, Nd:YAG laser second harmonic generation studies, electron paramagnetic spectroscopy and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.