Mittwoch 16:00 Uhr - 17:15 Uhr FIT seminar room

livMatS Colloquium | Prof. Rainer Herges (Christian-Albrecht Universität zu Kiel) | Switchable Molecular Magnets

Abstract
Molecules or ions are either paramagnetic (unpaired electrons) or diamagnetic (all electrons are paired). Switching between the two states under ambient conditions was considered a typical solid-state phenomenon and has been coined spin crossover. The first single molecular spin switches operated with light in solution were discovered a decade ago in our group, and they have been developed towards a number of technical applications that are not accessible to solid-state systems. We designed switchable contrast agents for MRI guided, catheter based interventions (stroke patients), switchable molecular magnets for MRI imaging of 3D temperature maps (location of heat sources, tumors, inflammation) and molecular electronics and spintronics. Using light control of magnetic field strengths, we currently work on super-high resolution MRI.

Brief Bio
Rainer Herges studied chemistry in Saarbrücken, obtained his PhD at the TU-Munich (Prof. Ugi) and from Munich he worked his way north to Erlangen (habilitation), Braunschweig (C3-Prof.) and finally Kiel (C4-Prof., since 2001). In between he was visiting professor at ENS in Paris, Stanford, Melbourne, Canberra and MIT (Boston). He started his independent career with the development of programs and applications of artificial intelligence in chemistry, i.e. the prediction and subsequent synthetic realization of new chemical reactions. Among further achievements are the synthesis of the first Möbius annulenes, and the first magnetically switchable molecules. Rainer Herges served as a member of the DFG panel Molecular Chemistry and was initiator and spokesman of the CRC677 “Function by Switching” during 12 years. He received numerous awards and is currently director of the Institute of Organic Chemistry at Kiel University.

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