NYSTAR was proud to nominate you for the Mayor's Award and we are pleased that you won. What did winning this prestigious award mean for you?
It is wonderful to be recognized.
Why did you pick organic chemistry as a focus of interest?
Applying synthetic organic chemistry to problems in nanoscience provides an untapped route to new, functional materials. The vast store of synthetic methodology available through organic chemistry provides an unparalleled amount of diversity. The key is to use chemical synthesis to write information into a molecular substructures that encodes assembly.
Describe an average day for you at Columbia.
There really doesn't seem to be one. I am usually too myopic to program my day well.
Please describe your top three scientific accomplishments.
The studies on crowded aromatics is nice because it uses a simple chemical principle to make polar materials whose assembly can be directed with electric fields. Our studies on thin film organic transistors is important because we created a new type of organic transistor where the active component is tethered to the gate dielectric surface. This provides a method to test the electrical properties on a collection of about ten thousand molecules in a self-assembled monolayer in an ultrasmall device. Our work on monolayer films on metals has provided new chemistry that will be useful in the in situ growing and testing of single molecule wires.
Why you feel this research is or will become useful?
Interfaces dominate a large portion of materials science. Understanding and controlling assembly of molecules in films is the lynch pin for success in a number of emerging areas such as molecular electronics.
What's going on right now in your research laboratory that you'd most like to share?
Right now I have a wonderful research group that are doing amazing things with molecules. Graduate students include Mark Bushey, Qian Miao, Wei Zhang, Jennifer Klare, Dana Horoszewski, George Tulevski, Yiliang Wang, Shengxiong Xiao, Jinyao Tang, Matthew Carnes, Matthew Myers, and Rachel Steiner. Post doctorates include Sebastien Sanaur, Bassam Alamaddine, and Yaron Cohen.
Where do you see your research going as you continue on in your career?
I like the idea of combining synthesis chemistry with two-dimensional self-assembly to develop methods to "synthesize interfaces".
Who are your key research and development partners?
We have a Nanoscience Center here at Columbia and also a Materials Research Center at Columbia that are very supportive of young faculty. They are the groups that I interact the most closely with. The executive and scientific directors of the Nanocenter are Jim Yardley, Horst Stormer, and Ron Breslow and the executive and scientific directors of the MRSEC are Irving Herman and Louis Brus. They have all been very selfless in promoting young faculty.
What challenges do you and your team encounter in research and development?
We have our day to day challenges but that is what makes science fun. Our biggest problem is that the day is too short.
You were awarded a Watson grant on the basis of your work on the synthesis, self-assembly, and study of artificial trans-membrane channels for the transport of molecules and genetic material. How has the Watson award money impacted your research?
The funds from the Watson award had an unforeseen impact on my research. It allowed us the resources and equipment to discover the monolayer transistors.
The Watson Program is designed to help early career researchers in the life sciences who demonstrate a willingness and ability to develop research into economic development opportunities in the State. What challenges have you faced in identifying commercial opportunities for your research?
The commercial aspect of some of our work will ultimately develop. Currently we are building a collaborative network with our industrial partners DuPont, IBM, and Bell Laboratories. This network will facilitate finding commercial outlets for our research.
Did you like science as a child?
Sure. I remember mixing vinegar and baking soda together a lot because we liked the way that it fizzed.
As a child, what did you dream of becoming?
I wanted to be an english teacher.
Why did you become a scientist?
I really got turned on by organic chemistry.
What do you like to do in your free time?
Be with my family.
How do you keep up with the daily progress made in the field of organic chemistry?
The only way is to read the literature. It is vast and sprawling. I read the Journal of the American Chemical Society, Angewandte Chemie, Science, Nature, Nanoletters, Advanced Materials and several other journals.
What changes do you anticipate seeing in your chosen field of research during the next 20 years?
I see a continued merging of the disciplines in the sciences. Nanoscience is a way of bringing physics, chemistry, and biology together to work towards common objectives.
What advice would you give someone interested in learning more about organic chemistry?
Go do chemistry research!
Could you please name some of your most recent publications?
(1) "Carbon Nanotubes - Semiconductor Networks for Organic Electronics: The Pick-Up Stick Transistor", X.-Y. Bo, C. Y. Lee, M. S. Strano, M. Goldfinger, C. Nuckolls, and G. B. Blanchet, Appl. Phys. Lett., submitted.
(2) "Attaching Organic Semiconductors to Gate Oxides: In Situ Assembly of Monolayer Field Effect Transistors", G. S. Tulevski, Q. Miao, M. Fukuto, R. Abram, B. Ocko, R. Pindak, M. Steigerwald, C. Kagan, and C. Nuckolls, J. Am. Chem. Soc., ASAP.
(3) "Self-Assembly and Electronics of Dipolar Linear Acenes", Q. Miao, M. Lefenfeld, C. Kloc, T. Seagrist, and C. Nuckolls, Adv. Mater., accepted.
(4) "Self-Assembled 3-Dimensional Conducting Network of Single Wall Carbon Nanotubes", G. B. Blanchet, S. Subramoney, R. K. Bailey, G, D, Jaycox, and C. Nuckolls, Appl. Phys. Lett., 2004, 85, 828-830.
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