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Inorganic Chemistry

Inorganic Chemistry stands at the center of chemistry and at a crossroads within molecular science. Transition metal-catalyzed reactions account for an economic output that equals the GDP of most industrialized nations. A majority of enzymes and even some regulatory proteins contain metal centers that control both chemical transformations and protein architecture. Even nanotechnology, which promises advances in communications and data storage, relies on fundamental coordination chemistry. Green chemistry also relies on catalysis.

The inorganic chemistry group at Yale focuses on organometallic chemistry (BC, JF, GM) and bioinorganic chemistry (GB, BC, AV). Reaction mechanisms, new chemical transformations, and novel structures, bonding, and electronic states lie at the heart of these areas. At Yale, one might investigate: the mechanism of an organometallic reaction; the mechanism of action of a metalloenzyme; the interaction of organic and metal-based radicals with the core of a photosynthetic site; the sequestering of metals from marine environments; the design of a new catalyst; organometallic methods development in organic synthesis; or a green synthesis for a pharmaceutical.

Thus, the inorganic chemistry program at Yale blends a flair for the practical with an emphasis on developing fundamental principles. New catalytic processes to synthesize pharmaceuticals or to modify polymers are discovered in parallel with basic principles involving transition metal systems. As a result, your education in inorganic chemistry at Yale will open the door to apply your knowledge in both academic and industrial settings to areas as diverse as polymer science, organic synthesis, chemical biology, and electronic materials or to studies at the core of inorganic chemistry where many major discoveries and significant applications remain to be found.

List of Faculty:

Paul T. Anastas
Gary Brudvig
Robert H. Crabtree
John W. Faller
Glenn C. Micalizio
Ann M. Valentine

see also
Gary L. Haller

Last modified: April 9, 2007

(rjc)