The overall research goal is the design, synthesis and characterization of new materials with an emphasis on understanding the fundamental issues of structural assembly and growth that will enable the rational control of the material composition, micro/nano-structure, morphology, property and functionality. Molecular sieves, and mesoporous (1.5–40.0nm), electro-optic materials, low-dimensional nanomaterials and organic-inorganic hybrid materials with especial interesting frameworks are being synthesized and studied. Current research topics in my laboratory are focused on synthesis and characterization of various advanced materials such as microporous materials, zeolites and mesoporous molecular sieves and porous coordination polymers, metal-organic frameworks and low-dimensional nanoscale materials. Synthesis of new materials and understanding of the synthesis mechanism are a target of primary importance among the research topics. Our research approaches center on self-assembly and supramolecular templating, molecular and block unite tailoring to prepare novel catalytic, electronic, and optical materials. These materials have a variety of possible applications including catalysis, separation, and electro-photonic microdevice.

Designed Synthesis of Microporous Solids, Molecular Sieves

Microporous materials especial molecular sieves are typically crystalline oxides with uniform pore sizes from 0.3 to 2.0 nm These Materials have been universally applied as catalysts in hydrocarbon processing, as adsorbents in gas, chemicals separation, and as sensors and photonic microdevices. A limiting factor in these applications is the restricted availability of nanoporous materials with desired pore sizes, pore architectures or chemical and physical characteristics required for specific applications. Our research in this area is aimed at synthesis novel microporous materials with unprecedented framework compositions and pore geometry by using hydrothermal, solvothermal, templating approaches. We emphasize to develop new synthetic methodologies to generate large pore, novel composited molecular sieves with new structures. The properties such as structural, thermal, sorption, ion exchange, catalytic and photonic properties will be evaluated to determine materials' suitability for various applications. Our research interests cover the oxides, semiconductors and chalcogenides.

Synthesis and Assembly of Mesostructured Materials

Quantum confinement in size and dimension can lead to chemical, electrical, and optical properties that are substantially different from those observed for the bulk material. These new properties can lead to numerous technological applications. My research group is interested in exploring new synthetic methodologies to prepare novel mesostructures with simultaneous control in size, surface features, and spatial arrangements from one to three dimensions. Recently we emphasize to synthesize new three-dimensional highly ordered large pore mesoporous materials. We are interesting to fabricate novel composited mesoporous molecular sieves such as silica, metal oxides, metal phosphates, semiconductors and chalcogenides. The templating approaches will extend to ‘soft and hard' supramolecular and bioprotein templates. The synthesis mechanism is a target to understand the formation and create novel materials. The properties such as structural, hydrothermal, sorption, separation, catalytic and photonic properties will be evaluated to determine materials' suitability for various applications.

Synthesis of Porous Metal-Organic Frameworks

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with variable and designable 1D, 2D or 3D network structures display specially functional features in electronics, magnet and non-linear optics, and have recently attracted much attention in chemistry, physics and materials science. Similar to zeolite structures, MOFs can be built up from either tetrahedral or octahedral building blocks and have 3D microporous channels and ultra-high specific surface areas, and potentially wide applications in asymmetric catalysis and chemical selective separation. In this area, we are mainly interested in developing new templating and hydrothermal synthesis approaches to porous MOFs. We will focus on designing molecular and controlling framework compositions, pore sizes, and pore channel topology. We like to use supramolecules and solvents as the templates to prevent the interpenetration and make the interpenetration network condensed. We will design porous coordination (organic/inorganic) solids and molecules with channels and cage voids by copolymerizing simple coordination complexes and rod-like or disk-like organic ligands and study their use as environmental decontamination materials, catalysts, sensors, and molecular capsules. The fabrication of MOF thin films by casting will be explored for separation and sensor applications.

Rational Synthesis and Organization of Low-dimensional Nanoscale Material Arrays

We are interesting in the synthesis of new classes of materials and nanostructures by using solvo- and hydrothermal approaches with an emphasis on understanding the fundamental issues of structural assembly and growth that will enable the rational control of material composition, micro/nano- structure, property and functionality. We are also exploring synthetic conditions for controlled growth and arrays of nanowires, nanotubes, nanoparticles. Particularly we are interested in the thermal stability, chemical stability and optoelectronic properties. Due to their high surface area, low-dimensionality and potential quantum confinement and many new physical properties that serve as the basis for miniaturized devices such as switch and sensors are expected. From a chemist's point view, nanoscale science is all about assembling matters at multiple length scales, from atomic and molecular species to individual nanostructures such as nanocrystals and nanowires, then from individual nanostructures to high-level functional systems. It is fairly obvious that the assembly behavior of these anisotropic building blocks would be completely different from those isotropic building blocks such as spherical nanocrystals. Besides the traditional covalent and electrostatic interactions, directional capillary and van der Waals interaction have to be taken into account in these anisotropic systems.