Research summary
Main-group chemistry, reaction modelling, electronic structure, main-group catalysis
Current research interests
Main-group chemistry has rapidly developed within the last two decades. The synthesis of low-oxidation state compounds has allowed for the activation of myriad chemical bonds, however the translation of these stoichiometric studies to catalytic methodologies has been difficult. In part, this is due to the difficulty in generating reactive low-oxidation state species, requiring harsh reducing reagents with are incompatible with catalysis. I am interested in exploring alternate methods of yielding reactive main-group species through photochemical and dehydrocoupling approaches. I am interested in studying the reactions of these metal complexes through synthetic, computational, and spectroscopic methods to provide a detailed picture of organometallic reactivity.
Past research interests
I graduated from the Australian National University in 2016 with a Bachelor of Philosophy (Science), with my final year under the supervision of Professor Tony Hill. I subsequently moved to Imperial College London to work with Professor Mark Crimmin in low-oxidation state aluminium chemistry, and was awarded a PhD in 2021 along with the Dalton Emerging Researcher Award in 2022. I then joined the group of Professor Kyle Lancaster at Cornell University as a Klarman Fellow studying the application of X-ray absorption spectroscopy to understand reactivity at Sn centres, among other collaborations. I have commenced my independent career at the University of Edinburgh as a Chancellor's Fellow where I am uniting synthetic, computational, and spectroscopic approaches to understand and develop novel approaches to the turnover of main-group reagents.
