David M. Jenkins
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David M. Jenkins
Professor
Dr. Jenkins completed his B.A. in chemistry from Cornell University in 2000, where he conducted research with Prof. Héctor Abruña on the synthesis and electrochemistry of phenanthroline-based copper complexes. He received his Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology in 2005, under the direction of Prof. Jonas Peters, for his study of low-spin pseudo-tetrahedral cobalt(II) complexes. While at Caltech, David Jenkins synthesized the first cobalt-imide complex. Dr. Jenkins then joined the laboratory of Prof. Jeffrey Long as a Miller Institute for Basic Research postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Berkeley. His research at U.C. Berkeley focused on the development of pentadentate capping ligands for utilization in single-molecule magnets and other magnetic materials. Dr. Jenkins joined the faculty of the University of Tennessee in 2008 and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2014.
Education
B.A., Cornell University (2000)
Ph.D., California Institute of Technology (2005)
Research
The Jenkins group focuses on inorganic and organic synthesis to develop chemical systems ranging from homogenous catalysis, to porous frameworks, to surface modifications. We concentrate on three distinct areas of research, all of which are centered around the use of five-membered N-heterocycles (azoles) as ligands for transition metals. The first area is focused on developing macrocyclic tetra N-heterocyclic carbene (NHCs) ligands to stabilize metal-ligand multiple bonds for oxidative group transfer reactions. Typical catalysis studies concentrate on aziridination or epoxidation. In the second area, we utilize triazoles for the development of new metal-organic nanotubes (MONTs). These novel materials are studied on the bulk and nanoscale. The third area employs NHCs as ligands for metal surfaces of nanoparticles. These coated materials have many potential applications in medicine and electronics. To characterize the broad spectrum of compounds and materials that we synthesize, we apply a wide variety of analytical techniques including nuclear magnetic resonance and other spectroscopies, mass spectrometry, porosity measurements, and X-ray diffraction, including both powder and single crystal.
Awards
Ziegler Professor
NSF Graduate Fellow, NSF CAREER Award
Miller Institute for Basic Research in Science Postdoctoral Fellow
Gleb Mamantov Professor