A large part of the research in our lab revolves around polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs. We develop synthetic methodologies to gain access to large PAHs on a multi-gram scale, as well as highly specific, aromatic molecules which serve as tools in the wider context of our research into the chemistry and reactivity of graphene.

Apart from just synthesizing them, we are also interested in studying the physico-chemical properties of aromatic molecules. For this we have access to a wide range of spectroscopy techniques, including UV-Vis, IR and Raman spectroscopy, as well as high field NMR spectroscopy and high resolution Mass spectrometry.

Lastly, we use PAHs in the bottom-up synthesis of 2D self-assembled, ultra-thin membranes, which we characterize using spectroscopic techniques such as AFM, SEM and TEM. Using DFT computations and Molecular Dynamic modeling we also are able to study the intermolecular interactions PAHs are engaged in on a molecular level.