Metal–Organic Frameworks (MOFs) is a class of material comprising organic linkers and inorganic, metal-ion-containing nodes, with diverse functionalities and wide-range of applications. Because of their porous nature and functional nodes and linkers, they are competent candidates for gas storage, separation, catalysis, and so on. Most MOFs, however, are intrinsically insulating,...
This thesis document is comprised of three research projects. The first investigates the active vibrational modes involved in twisted intramolecular charge transfer in a Julolidine-BODIPY dyad using two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy along with DFT calculations. We identified two types of vibrations, compression and torsional motion, as playing an important role in...
Renewable energy technology, more so than ever before, is critical to the survival of humanity. For decades, concentrated efforts into designing and developing such novel devices resulted in the innovation of solar-driven photovoltaics that were competitive with nonrenewable alternatives. This thesis explores the dynamic behavior of alternative material candidates that...
Many processes in nature and human-made settings rely on the unique properties of charged metal oxide:aqueous interfaces. Despite their ubiquity, these buried interfaces are challenging to study, since any analytical technique aiming to overcome the relatively small number density of interfacial versus bulk species must be highly sensitive and surface-selective....
This dissertation focuses on the study of the superionic state in multicomponent systems, where the smaller component exhibits delocalization and mobility while still maintaining system compactness through component attractions. Superionic behavior is widely observed in various systems and plays a crucial role in ceramic superionic conductors, which offer high ion...
One of the greatest challenges in heterogeneous catalysis is the rational design and development of new catalytic systems, due to synthetic limitations in the design of solid catalysts and inhomogeneity of chemical sites at solid surfaces. This obfuscates understanding of catalyst behavior and slows improvements of processes. One approach to...
Clean water supplies are required for industry and general life. However, water shortages dueto pollution and human activity are increasingly common, and new, more efficient, materials need
to be made to increase clean water supplies. To do this, fundamental information on the interaction
of water with ions at the atomic...
The continuing increase in atmospheric CO2 to concentrations exceeding 400 ppm has attracted considerable attention from both scientists and policymakers. Industrial fossil fuel consumption generates a significant amount of CO2 emissions, and in particular, energy-intensive molecular separations that require thermal processes, such as distillation, drying, or evaporation, are responsible for...
Despite the increasing interest in biogenic secondary organic aerosols (SOAs), their role in the climate system remains the greatest source of uncertainty in global models. Cloud formation, critical for the net cooling effect provided by cloud cover, is dependent on the abundance of SOA particles and their ability to activate...
Metalloenzymes catalyze remarkable reactions in Nature using transition metal ions. Common earth-abundant metals like copper, iron, zinc, and magnesium catalyze reactions that are the basis of life. These metal sites lend their chemistries to facilitate these reactions, making studying the structure and properties important in understanding the enzymes' abilities and...