Research Groups – A-Z

Research Focus

• Development of preparative methods for the production of novel nanostructured materials, interfaces and coatings
• Energy conversion: Optimization of charge carrier transport and exchange at nanostructured interfaces in solar cells, batteries and other electrodes

Research Focus

• X-ray spectroscopy on interfaces of thin layers
• In-situ- and operando-examinations of (photo)electrocatalytic materials

Research Focus

• N,N,O tripod ligands
• κ3-N,N,O-binding ligands
• Organometallic and Coordination Chemistry

Research Focus

• Characterization of odour-active substances relevant to human food and the environment
• Resorption, transmission and metabolism processes of odour-active compounds in humans
• Physiological and psychological behaviours of humans as a result of odour exposure

Research Focus

• Computational methods for the simulation of chemical and biological systems
• Mechanisms of reactions to redox-active metal centers
• Reactions of organic radicals
• Conformational changes of proteins that lead to biological switching functions

Research Focus

• Synthetic organometallic chemistry
• Asymmetric catalysis
• Functional ionic liquids

Research Focus

• Physical Chemistry

Research areas

• Molecular machines
• Photochemistry
• Functional supramolecular systems
• Physical-organic chemistry

Research Focus

• Research into protein-protein interactions using synthetic mimetics of protein binding sites
• Modulation of protein functions through targeted intervention in the underlying molecular interactions
• Research into novel antiviral therapeutic approaches
• Development of peptide chemical methods for site-specific chemical ligation and protein modification

Research Focus

• X-ray microscopy with high-brilliant synchrotron radiation
• Functional organic layers
• Molecular self-organization

Research areas

Discovery of highly selective ligands of G protein-coupled receptors based on high-resolution biomolecular structures: design, synthesis, binding and activation studies, molecular dynamics simulations

Research Focus

• Quantum chemistry
• Development of density functional methods for finite systems (molecules and clusters) and periodic systems (polymers, molecular wires, surfaces and solids)

Research Focus

• Organic synthesis
• Characterization of nanoscale structures

Research Focus

• Spectroscopic and microscopic techniques for characterizing new molecular architectures
• Supermolecular hybrid systems, quantum dots, quantum rods and nanoparticles
• Ultra-short-term spectroscopy, vibration spectroscopy, microscopy
• Molecular light-controlled systems

Research areas

• Sustainable Catalysis with main group metals
• Activation of aromatic systems and strong C-H bonds with main group metal cocktails
• Metal hydride chemistry and catalytic (de)hydrogenation
• Synthesis and reactivity of low-valent main group metal complexes
• Application of ball-milling in organometallic chemistry
• Lanthanide chemistry
• Challenging preparative synthetic methods under inert atmosphere

Publications

Latest publications and news can be found at X (Twitter): @harder_research

A full up-to-date publication record can be found at: Scopus

Top-5 recent publications

1. J. Mai, J. Maurer, J. Langer, S. Harder* Nature Synthesis 2024, 3, 368–377. Heterobimetallic Alkaline-Earth Metal-Metal Bonding https://doi.org/10.1038/s44160-023-00451-y
2. B. Rösch, T. Gentner, J. Eyselein, J. Langer, H. Elsen, S. Harder* Nature 2021, 592, 717-721. Strongly reducing magnesium(0) complexes https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03401-w
3. B. Rösch, T. Gentner, J. Langer, C. Färber, J. Eyselein, L. Zhao, C. Ding, G. Frenking*, S. Harder* Science 2021, 371, 1125-1128. Dinitrogen complexation and reduction at low-valent calcium https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abf2374
4. C. Färber, P. Stegner, U. Zenneck, C. Knüpfer, G. Bendt, S. Schulz, S. Harder* Nature Communications 2022, 13, 3210. Teaming up main group metals with metallic iron to boost hydrogenation catalysis https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-30840-4
5. H. Bauer, M. Alonso*, C. Färber, H. Elsen, J. Pahl, A. Causero, G. Ballmann, F. De Proft, S. Harder* Nature Catalysis, 2018, 1, 40-47. Imine Hydrogenation with Simple Alkaline Earth Metal Catalysts 10.1038/s41929-017-0006-0

Research Focus

• Fullerenes, carbon nanotubes, porphyrins, dendrimers, calixarene and acetylene compounds
• Development of new synthesis methods for, e. g., chiral and amphiphilic functional units as well as for derivatized carbon-rich molecules
• Systematic research into the self-building of achiral and chiral supramolecular overstructures
• Calculation of molecular properties with quantum mechanical methods

Research Focus

• Multifunctional magnetoplasmonic Au-Fe₃O₄ nanoheterodimers for multimodal cancer therapies
• Multicellular tumor spheroids as an in vivo-like tumor model for validating nanotherapeutics
• Plexcitonic gold nanostructures for optoelectronic applications

Research Focus

• The application of homology modelling and molecule dynamics simulations to clarify the structure and function of biomolecules

Research areas

• Model studies in interface and materials science bridging fundamental and applied research
• Functional interfaces and nanomaterials
• New materials in energy storage and conversion, catalysis, electrochemistry, molecular electronics, and nanotechnology
• In-situ and operando spectroscopy and microscopy from ideal environments to realistic conditions

Research Area

• Synthesis and (forced) assembly of (inorganic) nano building blocks to functional supraparticles
• Supraparticle structure and building block interaction control for functionality by design
• Design of supraparticles as communicating / interactive objects, multifunctional adsorbers / carriers and catalysts
• Application of supraparticles towards a sustainable inorganic chemistry in the fields of environment, resources and energy

Research Focus

The research interests in the Meyer working group aim to build bridges between classical coordination chemistry and the current fields of supramolecular, bioinorganic and organometallic chemistry. The synthesis of new chelating ligands and their coordination compounds with transition metals and actinides is in the foreground.

Research Focus

Prof. Mokhir's research topics include the development of controllable chemical catalysts and their application (a) for the detection of biomolecules (nucleic acids, proteins) in living cells, (b) for the development of functional nanostructures, and (c) as cancer-specific cytostatics.

Research Focus

Surface and in situ spectroscopy

Research Focus

The Food Chemistry research group focuses on the molecular determinants of food bioactivity and functionality. Foods are complex systems, which are composed of thousands of different components. In order to understand how the food's molecular composition modulates its (bio-)function, comprehensive profiling methods are applied based on cutting-edige mass spectrometry methods and bioinformatics tools.

Research Focus

Our current scientific interest is focused on the field of supramolecular chemistry. Weak interactions with artificial host molecules are exploited to specifically identify small guests. These detection processes are used, for example, in catalysis - here the focus is on organic-chemical transformations in aqueous medium.

Research Focus

• Ionic liquid surface science
• Surface Chemistry of porphyrins
• Liquid metal catalysis
• In situ studies of surface reactions
• Supported graphene

Research Focus

Theoretical chemistry, atomic simulation with focus on germformation processes and material chemistry