 | Louise A. Berben Assistant Professor Email: berben@chem.ucdavis.edu Phone:(530) 752-8475 B. Sc. (Hon) University of New South Wales 2000 Ph. D. University of California Berkeley 2005 Postdoctoral Fellow, CalTech and M.I.T. 2006-2009 Appointed to faculty, July 2009 Group Page |
| Principal Research Interests |  |
We are a synthetic and physical inorganic chemistry research group specializing in the design, synthesis and characterization of new ligands, complexes, and clusters. Our focus is primarily on the cheap, and earth abundant first row transition metals. Our research includes activation of small, abundant molecules to facilitate their transformation into higher value molecular products and fuels. Employing both chemical and electrocatalytic methods, this work is pertinent to using solar radiation as a source of renewable energy. We also study in detail the magnetic properties of the new paramagnetic molecules that we make, with a view to
quantum computing and spintronics applications.
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| Representative Publications Hydrogen Evolution by Cobalt tetraimine complxes adsorbed on electrode surfaces. Berben, L. A.; Peters, J. C. Chem. Commun. 2010, Advance article. Dimanganese and Diiron Complexes of a Binucleating Cyclam Ligand: Four Electron Oxidation Chemistry at High Potentials. Berben, L. A.; Peters, J. C. Inorg. Chem. 2008, 47, 11669-11679. Dinitrogen and Acetylide Complexes of Low-Valent Chromium. Berben, L. A.;* Kozimor, S. A. Inorg. Chem. 2008, 47, 4639-4647. Angle Dependent Electronic Effects in 4,4-bypridine-bridged Ru3 Triangle and Ru4 Square Complexes. Berben, L. A.; Faia, M. C.; Crawford, N. R. M.; Long, J. R. Inorg. Chem. 2006, 45, 6378-6386. Homoleptic Trimethylsilylacetylide Complexes of Chromium(III), Iron(II), and Cobalt(III): Syntheses, Structures, and Ligand Field Parameters. Berben, L. A.; Long, J. R. Inorg. Chem. 2005, 44, 8459-8468. Synthesis and Alkali Metal Ion-Binding Properties of a Chromium(III) Triacetylide Complex. Berben, L. A.; Long, J. R. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124, 11588-11589. [(Cyclen)4Ru4(pz)4]9+: A Creutz-Taube Square. Lau, V. C.; Berben, L. A.; Long, J. R. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2002, 124, 9042-9043. | |