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Lecture : The Art of Building Small from Molecular Switches to Motors
Ben Feringa will be giving a lecture as part of the ESPCI International Scientific Committee, in the IPGG amphitheatre on Thursday 2 May at 5.30pm
Abstract :
The fascinating molecular motors and machines that sustain life offer a great source of inspiration to the molecular explorer at the nanoscale. Among the major challenges ahead in the design of complex artificial molecular systems and is the control over dynamic properties and responsive far-from-equilibrium behavior. Chemical systems and adaptive materials ultimately require integration of structure, organization and function of multi-component dynamic molecular assemblies at different hierarchical levels. A major goal is to achieve and exploit translational and rotary motion.
In this presentation the focus is on the dynamics of functional molecular systems as well as triggering and assembly processes. We design switches and motors in which molecular motion is coupled to specific functions. For instance, Photopharmacology offers fascinating opportunities to control biological function by light. Responsive behavior will also be illustrated in self-assembly and responsive materials with a focus on cooperative action, amplification along multiple length scales and 2D and 3D organized systems. The design, synthesis and functioning of rotary molecular motors and machines will be presented with a prospect toward future dynamic molecular systems and materials
Information on http://www.benferinga.com
– Molecular Machines: Nature, September 2015
– Molecular Switches: Chemistry World, June 2016
– Vision statement “Materials in Motion”: Adv. Mater. 2020
Ben Feringa
Ben L. Feringa obtained his PhD degree at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands under the guidance of Professor Hans Wynberg. After working as a research scientist at Shell in the Netherlands and the UK, he was appointed lecturer and in 1988 full professor at the University of Groningen and named the Jacobus H. van ’t Hoff Distinguished Professor of Molecular Sciences in 2004. He was elected Foreign Honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences. In 2008 he was appointed Academy Professor and he was knighted by Her Majesty the Queen of the Netherlands. Feringa’s research has been recognized with numerous awards including the Körber European Science Award (2003), the Spinoza Award (2004), the Prelog gold medal (2005), the Norrish Award of the ACS (2007), the Paracelsus medal (2008), the Chirality medal (2009), the RSC Organic Stereochemistry Award (2011), the Humboldt award (2012), the Nagoya gold medal (2013), the ACS Cope Scholar Award (2015), the Chemistry for the Future Solvay Prize (2015), the August-Wilhelm-von-Hoffman Medal (2016), the 2016 Nobel prize in Chemistry, the Tetrahedron Prize (2017), and the European Chemistry Gold Medal (2018). In 2019, he was elected as a member of the European Research Council and a Foreign Member of the US National Academy, USA, and in 2020 as a Foreign Member Royal Society (London) UK. Feringa’s research interest includes stereochemistry, organic synthesis, asymmetric catalysis, molecular switches and motors, self-assembly, molecular nanosystems, and photo pharmacology.