Erik Alexanian

Professor

Synthetic Organic and Organometallic Chemistry, Catalysis

Research in our group focuses on the general areas of reaction development and chemical synthesis. Our studies are ultimately driven by the discovery of new and useful forms of chemical reactivity. Harnessing these new forms of chemical reactivity for the development of powerful reactions and strategies for synthesis is a major focus. A theme of these studies is an emphasis on catalytic transformations employing easily accessed substrates and common molecular functionality.

We also perform detailed investigations probing reaction mechanism and kinetics that is critical to understanding these processes. Complex synthesis will also become a focus of our group, as the remarkable array of unique architectures that nature provides can inspire us to develop creative solutions to challenging problems in synthesis.

A.B. Chemistry, Harvard University, 2001; Ph.D. Princeton University, 2006; NIH Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006-2008