William Dichtel

Last updated

William Dichtel
BornSeptember 19, 1978
Alma mater Massachusetts Institute of Technology B.S. (2000)
University of California Berkeley Ph.D. (2005)
Awards Beckman Young Investigators Award, [1] MacArthur Fellow
Scientific career
FieldsChemistry
Institutions Northwestern University (2016-present)

Cornell University (2008-2016)
University of California Los Angeles (2005–2008)

Contents

California Institute of Technology (2005–2008)
Thesis Design and synthesis of porphyrin containing macromolecules for light harvesting and catalysis  (2005)
Doctoral advisor Jean Fréchet
Other academic advisors Sir Fraser Stoddart, Jim Heath, Tim Swager
Website sites.northwestern.edu/dichtel/

William Dichtel (born 1978, Houston, Texas) [2] is the Robert L. Letsinger Professor of Chemistry at Northwestern University [3] and a 2015 MacArthur Fellow who has helped pioneer the development of porous polymers known as covalent organic frameworks. [4] Dichtel was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2018. [5] In 2020, Dichtel was selected as the 2020 Laureate in Chemistry of the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists. [6] He also founded Cylopure, a university spin-off that seeks to bring to market water filtration with cyclodextrin polymers. [7]

Professor Ditchel is an accomplished open water swimmer. He completed the Chicago Sky Line Swim in 2022 as well as successfully crossing the English Channel on June 25, 2024 in 12 hours, 8 minutes.

Early life and education

Dichtel was born in 1978 in Houston, Texas. [8] He was raised in Roanoke, Virginia. Dichtel earned his B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2000, where he worked in the laboratory of Prof. Timothy M. Swager. [4] [9] He then moved to the University of California at Berkeley to perform graduate studies in the laboratory of Prof. Jean M. J. Fréchet. [8] In Fréchet's lab, Dichtel synthesized porphyrin-containing dendrimers for light harvesting applications. [10] [11] [12] He then moved to Los Angeles to perform joint postdoctoral research between 2005 and 2008 with Prof. Fraser Stoddart at UCLA, and Prof. James R. Heath at Caltech, where he studied rotaxanes. [13] [14]

Independent career

Dichtel began his independent career at Cornell University in 2008, as an assistant professor in the department of chemistry and chemical biology. [8] He was promoted to associate professor in 2014. [9] Dichtel moved to Northwestern University in 2016, where he holds the post of Robert L. Letsinger Professor of Chemistry.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rotaxane</span> Interlocked molecular structure resembling a dumbbell

A rotaxane is a mechanically interlocked molecular architecture consisting of a dumbbell-shaped molecule which is threaded through a macrocycle. The two components of a rotaxane are kinetically trapped since the ends of the dumbbell are larger than the internal diameter of the ring and prevent dissociation (unthreading) of the components since this would require significant distortion of the covalent bonds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polycatenane</span> Mechanically interlocked molecular architecture

A polycatenane is a chemical substance that, like polymers, is chemically constituted by a large number of units. These units are made up of concatenated rings into a chain-like structure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dendrimer</span> Highly ordered, branched polymeric molecule

Dendrimers are highly ordered, branched polymeric molecules. Synonymous terms for dendrimer include arborols and cascade molecules. Typically, dendrimers are symmetric about the core, and often adopt a spherical three-dimensional morphology. The word dendron is also encountered frequently. A dendron usually contains a single chemically addressable group called the focal point or core. The difference between dendrons and dendrimers is illustrated in the top figure, but the terms are typically encountered interchangeably.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Molecular machine</span> Molecular-scale artificial or biological device

Molecular machines are a class of molecules typically described as an assembly of a discrete number of molecular components intended to produce mechanical movements in response to specific stimuli, mimicking macromolecular devices such as switches and motors. Naturally occurring or biological molecular machines are responsible for vital living processes such as DNA replication and ATP synthesis. Kinesins and ribosomes are examples of molecular machines, and they often take the form of multi-protein complexes. For the last several decades, scientists have attempted, with varying degrees of success, to miniaturize machines found in the macroscopic world. The first example of an artificial molecular machine (AMM) was reported in 1994, featuring a rotaxane with a ring and two different possible binding sites. In 2016 the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Jean-Pierre Sauvage, Sir J. Fraser Stoddart, and Bernard L. Feringa for the design and synthesis of molecular machines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fraser Stoddart</span> Scottish chemist and 2016 Nobel Laureate

Sir James Fraser Stoddart is a British-American chemist who is Chair Professor in Chemistry at the University of Hong Kong. He has also been Board of Trustees Professor of Chemistry and head of the Stoddart Mechanostereochemistry Group in the Department of Chemistry at Northwestern University in the United States. He works in the area of supramolecular chemistry and nanotechnology. Stoddart has developed highly efficient syntheses of mechanically-interlocked molecular architectures such as molecular Borromean rings, catenanes and rotaxanes utilising molecular recognition and molecular self-assembly processes. He has demonstrated that these topologies can be employed as molecular switches. His group has even applied these structures in the fabrication of nanoelectronic devices and nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS). His efforts have been recognized by numerous awards, including the 2007 King Faisal International Prize in Science. He shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with Ben Feringa and Jean-Pierre Sauvage in 2016 for the design and synthesis of molecular machines.

Jean M.J. Fréchet is a French-American chemist and professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He is best known for his work on polymers including polymer-supported chemistry, chemically amplified photoresists, dendrimers, macroporous separation media, and polymers for therapeutics. Ranked among the top 10 chemists in 2021, he has authored nearly 900 scientific paper and 200 patents including 96 US patents. His research areas include organic synthesis and polymer chemistry applied to nanoscience and nanotechnology with emphasis on the design, fundamental understanding, synthesis, and applications of functional macromolecules.

In chemistry, mechanically interlocked molecular architectures (MIMAs) are molecules that are connected as a consequence of their topology. This connection of molecules is analogous to keys on a keychain loop. The keys are not directly connected to the keychain loop but they cannot be separated without breaking the loop. On the molecular level, the interlocked molecules cannot be separated without the breaking of the covalent bonds that comprise the conjoined molecules; this is referred to as a mechanical bond. Examples of mechanically interlocked molecular architectures include catenanes, rotaxanes, molecular knots, and molecular Borromean rings. Work in this area was recognized with the 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Bernard L. Feringa, Jean-Pierre Sauvage, and J. Fraser Stoddart.

A molecular switch is a molecule that can be reversibly shifted between two or more stable states. The molecules may be shifted between the states in response to environmental stimuli, such as changes in pH, light, temperature, an electric current, microenvironment, or in the presence of ions and other ligands. In some cases, a combination of stimuli is required. The oldest forms of synthetic molecular switches are pH indicators, which display distinct colors as a function of pH. Currently synthetic molecular switches are of interest in the field of nanotechnology for application in molecular computers or responsive drug delivery systems. Molecular switches are also important in biology because many biological functions are based on it, for instance allosteric regulation and vision. They are also one of the simplest examples of molecular machines.

Potassium dicyanoargentate is an inorganic compound with the formula KAg(CN)2. A white solid, it is the K+ salt of the linear coordination complex [Ag(CN)2]. It forms upon treatment of virtually any silver salt with two equivalents of potassium cyanide.

α-Cyclodextrin Chemical compound

α-Cyclodextrin (alpha-cyclodextrin), sometimes abbreviated as α-CD, is a hexasaccharide derived from glucose. It is related to the β- (beta) and γ- (gamma) cyclodextrins, which contain seven and eight glucose units, respectively. All cyclodextrins are white, water-soluble solids with minimal toxicity. Cyclodextrins tend to bind other molecules in their quasi-cylindrical, lipophilic interiors. The compound is of wide interest because it exhibits host–guest properties, forming inclusion compounds. This inclusion behavior leads to applications in medicine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bert Meijer</span> Dutch organic chemist

Egbert (Bert) Willem Meijer is a Dutch organic chemist, known for his work in the fields of supramolecular chemistry, materials chemistry and polymer chemistry. Meijer, who is distinguished professor of Molecular Sciences at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) and Academy Professor of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, is considered one of the founders of the field of supramolecular polymer chemistry. Meijer is a prolific author, sought-after academic lecturer and recipient of multiple awards in the fields of organic and polymer chemistry.

Cyclobis(paraquat-<i>p</i>-phenylene) Chemical compound

Cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene) belongs to the class of cyclophanes, and consists of aromatic units connected by methylene bridges. It is able to incorporate small guest molecule and has played an important role in host–guest chemistry and supramolecular chemistry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polyrotaxane</span>

Polyrotaxane is a type of mechanically interlocked molecule consisting of strings and rings, in which multiple rings are threaded onto a molecular axle and prevented from dethreading by two bulky end groups. As oligomeric or polymeric species of rotaxanes, polyrotaxanes are also capable of converting energy input to molecular movements because the ring motions can be controlled by external stimulus. Polyrotaxanes have attracted much attention for decades, because they can help build functional molecular machines with complicated molecular structure.

Jeffrey I. Zink is an American molecular biologist and chemist currently a Distinguished Professor at University of California, Los Angeles whose interests are in materials, nanoscience, physical and inorganic chemistry. His current research is examining molecules containing metal and nanomaterials. He worked with Fraser Stoddart to help develop machines that could be applied to deliver drugs. According to Google Scholar, his highest citations are 2,503, 2,131, 1,968, 1,873, and 1,150.

Geoffrey "Geoff" William Coates is an American chemist and the Tisch University Professor in the department of chemistry and chemical biology at Cornell University.

Virgil Percec is a Romanian-American chemist and P. Roy Vagelos Chair and Professor of Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania. Expert in organic, macromolecular and supramolecular chemistry including self-assembly, biological membrane mimics, complex chiral systems, and catalysis. Pioneered the fields of liquid crystals with complex architecture, supramolecular dendrimers, Janus dendrimers and glycodendrimers, organic Frank-Kasper phases and quasicrystals, supramolecular polymers, helical chirality, Ni-catalyzed cross-coupling and multiple living and self-interrupted polymerizations. Most of these concepts were inspired by Nature and biological principles.

Patrick L. Holland (born 1971) is the Conkey P. Whitehead Professor of Chemistry at Yale University. Holland's research focuses on low-coordinate and high-spin coordination complexes of iron and cobalt, that react with small molecules such as alkenes, arenes, and N2.

Stuart J. Rowan is a Scottish chemist.

Rebekka Klausen is an American chemist who is the Second Decade Society Associate Professor at Johns Hopkins University. Her research considers carbon and silicon-based nanomaterials for optoelectronic devices. She was a finalist for the 2021 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists.

Alexandra Martha Zoya Slawin is a British chemist and Professor at the University of St Andrews. Her research looks to understand the structure of supramolecular systems. She is generally considered as one of the world's leading crystallographers. She was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2011.

References

  1. "William Dichtel". Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation. Retrieved March 9, 2017.
  2. "William Dichtel". Dichtel Research Profile. Northwestern University.
  3. "Dichtel Research Group | At the Interface of Organic and Materials Chemistry". Northwestern University.
  4. 1 2 "William Dichtel — MacArthur Foundation". MacArthur Foundation. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  5. "John Simon Guggenheim Foundation | Will Dichtel" . Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  6. "Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists Announce 2020 Laureates". Blavatnik Family Foundation. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  7. Bomgardner, Melody M. (February 22, 2019). "CycloPure raises $5 million for cyclodextrin water filtration products". cen.acs.org. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 "John Simon Guggenheim Foundation | Will Dichtel" . Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  9. 1 2 "William Dichtel – Dichtel Research Group". sites.northwestern.edu. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  10. Dichtel, William R.; Serin, Jason M.; Edder, Carine; Fréchet, Jean M. J.; Matuszewski, Michael; Tan, Loon-Seng; Ohulchanskyy, Tymish Y.; Prasad, Paras N. (2004). "Singlet Oxygen Generation via Two-Photon Excited FRET". Journal of the American Chemical Society. 126 (17): 5380–5381. doi:10.1021/ja031647x. ISSN   0002-7863. PMID   15113208.
  11. Dichtel, William R.; Hecht, Stefan; Fréchet, Jean M. J. (2005). "Functionally Layered Dendrimers: A New Building Block and Its Application to the Synthesis of Multichromophoric Light-Harvesting Systems". Organic Letters. 7 (20): 4451–4454. doi:10.1021/ol0516824. ISSN   1523-7060. PMID   16178556.
  12. Dichtel, William R.; Baek, Kyung-Youl; Fréchet, Jean M. J.; Rietveld, Ivo B.; Vinogradov, Sergei A. (2006). "Amphiphilic diblock star polymer catalysts via atom transfer radical polymerization". Journal of Polymer Science Part A: Polymer Chemistry. 44 (17): 4939–4951. Bibcode:2006JPoSA..44.4939D. doi:10.1002/pola.21610. ISSN   1099-0518.
  13. Dichtel, William R.; Miljanić, Ognjen Š.; Spruell, Jason M.; Heath, James R.; Stoddart, J. Fraser (August 1, 2006). "Efficient Templated Synthesis of Donor−Acceptor Rotaxanes Using Click Chemistry". Journal of the American Chemical Society. 128 (32): 10388–10390. doi:10.1021/ja063127i. ISSN   0002-7863. PMID   16895403.
  14. Dichtel, William R; Heath, James R; Fraser Stoddart, J (June 15, 2007). "Designing bistable [2]rotaxanes for molecular electronic devices". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences. 365 (1855): 1607–1625. Bibcode:2007RSPTA.365.1607D. doi:10.1098/rsta.2007.2034. PMID   17430812. S2CID   2278747.