Timothy M. Swager | |
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Born | Timothy Manning Swager July 1, 1961 |
Education | Montana State University (BS) California Institute of Technology (PhD) |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Chemistry, Materials science, Polymer science |
Institutions | University of Pennsylvania, Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
Thesis | Precursor routes to conducting polymers from the ring-opening metathesis polymerization of cyclic olefins. (1988) |
Doctoral advisor | Robert H. Grubbs |
Other academic advisors | Mark S. Wrighton |
Website | swagergroup |
Timothy M. Swager (born 1961) is an American Scientist and the John D. MacArthur Professor of Chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His research is at the interface of chemistry and materials science, with specific interests in carbon nanomaterials, polymers, and liquid crystals. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Inventors.
A native of Sheridan Montana, Swager earned his BS in Chemistry from Montana State University, received a PhD from the California Institute of Technology working with Robert H. Grubbs, and performed postdoctoral studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology under Mark S. Wrighton. He began as an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania in 1990 and returned to MIT in 1996 as a Full Professor. Swager is best known for advancing new chemical sensing concepts based on molecular electronic principles. He introduced the concepts of charge and energy transport through molecular and nanowires as a method to create amplified signals to chemical events. [1] [2] These methods gave rise to the sensitive explosive sensors that have been commercialized under the trade name Fido. [3] He demonstrated the integration of molecular recognition into chemiresistive sensors, first with conducting polymers and later with carbon nanotubes, and these methods were first commercialized by C2Sense. [4] He is also the cofounder of PolyJoule Inc. [5] that produces organic batteries for stationary energy storage, and founded Xibus Systems [6] that is developing improved methods for pathogenic bacteria detection in food production.
Swager also has pioneering contributions to the areas of liquid crystals demonstrating how novel molecular shapes can be used to introduce intermolecular correlations in structures and alignment. [7] In the area of high strength materials, by creating interlocking structures with enhanced ductility and strength. [8] In carbon nanomaterials he has developed methods for functionalizing and/or dispersing graphenes and carbon nanotubes. [9] [10] [11] [12] Also he has designed novel radical materials in collaboration with Robert G. Griffin (MIT) for dynamic nuclear polarization to enhance the signal to noise ratio in NMR experiments. [13] A number of these enhancement agents are commercially available from DyNuPol Corp. [14] Swager has published more than 500 peer reviewed manuscripts and has more than 100 issued patents. As of March 2023, he has a Hirsch index of 117.
Polythiophenes (PTs) are polymerized thiophenes, a sulfur heterocycle. The parent PT is an insoluble colored solid with the formula (C4H2S)n. The rings are linked through the 2- and 5-positions. Poly(alkylthiophene)s have alkyl substituents at the 3- or 4-position(s). They are also colored solids, but tend to be soluble in organic solvents.
The term molecular recognition refers to the specific interaction between two or more molecules through noncovalent bonding such as hydrogen bonding, metal coordination, hydrophobic forces, van der Waals forces, π-π interactions, halogen bonding, or resonant interaction effects. In addition to these direct interactions, solvents can play a dominant indirect role in driving molecular recognition in solution. The host and guest involved in molecular recognition exhibit molecular complementarity. Exceptions are molecular containers, including e.g. nanotubes, in which portals essentially control selectivity.
James Mitchell Tour is an American chemist and nanotechnologist. He is a Professor of Chemistry, Professor of Materials Science and Nanoengineering, and Professor of Computer Science at Rice University in Houston, Texas.
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In chemistry, solvatochromism is the phenomenon observed when the colour of a solution is different when the solute is dissolved in different solvents.
Explosives trace detectors (ETD) are explosive detection equipment able to detect explosives of small magnitude. The detection is accomplished by sampling non-visible "trace" amounts of particulates. Devices similar to ETDs are also used to detect narcotics. The equipment is used mainly in airports and other vulnerable areas considered susceptible to acts of unlawful interference.
The Fido explosives detector is a battery-powered, handheld sensory device that uses amplifying fluorescent polymer (AFP) materials to detect trace levels of high explosives like trinitrotoluene (TNT). It was developed by Nomadics, a subsidiary of ICX Technologies, in the early 2000s as part of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's (DARPA) Dog's Nose program. The Fido explosives detector is considered the first artificial nose capable of detecting landmines in the real world. The device was named after its ability to detect explosive vapors at concentrations of parts per quadrillion, which is comparable to the sensitivity of a bomb-sniffing dog’s nose, i.e. the historical “gold standard” for finding concealed explosives.
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Zhenan Bao is a chemical engineer. She serves as K. K. Lee Professor of Chemical Engineering at Stanford University, with courtesy appointments in Chemistry and Material Science and Engineering. She served as the Department Chair of Chemical Engineering from 2018 to 2022. Bao is known for her work on organic field-effect transistors and organic semiconductors, for applications including flexible electronics and electronic skin.
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In materials and electric battery research, cobalt oxide nanoparticles usually refers to particles of cobalt(II,III) oxide Co
3O
4 of nanometer size, with various shapes and crystal structures.
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