Faculty & Research

Malcolm D. E. Forbes - Physical Organic Chemistry, Photochemistry, ESR

H. Peter Lu - Spectroscopy of Interfaces

Alexis D. Ostrowski - Inorganic Photochemistry, Biomaterials

Julie A. Peterson - Photoswitches, Photoresponsive materials, Photoinitiators, Covalent Adaptable Networks

Jayaraman Sivaguru - Organic/Supramolecular Photochemistry, Solid State Photochemistry, Photodegradable/recyclable polymers, Green Chemistry, Materials Chemistry

Liangfeng Sun - Nanocrystal-based solar cells

Mikhail Zamkov - Optoelectronic Nanomaterials

General Explanation: This branch deals with the properties and behavior of inorganic compounds, which include metals, minerals, and organometallic compounds (molecules containing a bond between a carbon atom and a metal).

Relation to BGSU Chemistry: At BGSU, inorganic chemistry heavily intersects with catalysis and solar energy conversion. Researchers (such as the Ostrowski group) focus on coordination chemistry and metallo-supramolecular systems. They study how metal complexes can absorb light to trigger chemical reactions, which is vital for building molecular machines, chemical sensors, and systems that convert solar energy into clean fuels.

Joseph C. Furgal - Silicon chemistry, Metal ligand motifs, and Metal catalysis

H. Peter Lu - Spectroscopy of Interfaces

Alexis D. Ostrowski - Inorganic Photochemistry, Biomaterials

General Explanation: This discipline sits at the intersection of chemistry and physics. It uses the principles of physics—such as quantum mechanics, thermodynamics, and kinetics—to understand how chemical systems behave at a fundamental, mathematical level.

Relation to BGSU Chemistry: BGSU features world-class infrastructure for physical chemistry, specifically focusing on ultrafast laser spectroscopy and computational quantum chemistry. Faculty members (like the Cable, Tarnovsky, and Olivucci groups) utilize femtosecond-resolved lasers and massive computational modeling to record chemical reactions and electron movements in real time. They essentially map out the exact quantum "pathways" molecules take after being struck by light.

John Cable - Supersonic Jet Expansion Spectroscopy

Joseph C. Furgal - Silsesquioxane polymer photophysics and energy transfer

Malcolm D. E. Forbes - Physical Organic Chemistry, Photochemistry, ESR

Jayaraman Sivaguru - Organic/Supramolecular Photochemistry, Solid State Photochemistry, Photodegradable/recyclable polymers, Green Chemistry, Materials Chemistry

H. Peter Lu - Single Molecule Spectroscopy

Massimo Olivucci - Computational Photochemistry & Photobiology

Liangfeng Sun - Nanocrystal-based solar cells

Alexander N. Tarnovsky - Ultrafast Spectroscopy

Mikhail Zamkov - Optoelectronic Nanomaterials

Alexey T. Zayak - Atomistic DFT Simulations, Raman Spectroscopy

General Explanation: Biochemistry is the study of the chemical processes and substances that occur within living organisms, focusing heavily on biomolecules like proteins, DNA, RNA, and lipids.

Relation to BGSU Chemistry: Biochemistry at BGSU is highly interdisciplinary, heavily bridging the Chemistry and Biological Sciences departments (often working through the Center for Biomolecular Sciences). Research focuses heavily on the structure, function, and dynamics of proteins. Faculty labs (like the Tan and Lu groups) use single-molecule spectroscopy and imaging to study enzyme kinetics, nucleic acid interactions, and biophysics to solve medical and diagnostic challenges.

Joseph C. Furgal - Anti-fungal and anti-bacterial surface enhancements 

H. Peter Lu - Spectroscopy of Interfaces

Massimo Olivucci - Computational Photochemistry & Photobiology

Alexis D. Ostrowski - Inorganic Photochemistry, Biomaterials

Xiaohong Tan - Protein Biochemistry, Peptide/Protein Chemistry, Bioanalytical Chemistry, Chemical Biology, and Bioengineering 

General Explanation: Often called sustainable chemistry, this area focuses on designing chemical products and processes that minimize or eliminate the use and generation of hazardous substances. It values atom economy, energy efficiency, and renewable feedstocks.

Relation to BGSU Chemistry: Driven by environmental initiatives and Great Lakes protection efforts, BGSU places a heavy emphasis on sustainability. Researchers design degradable substitutes for single-use plastics, create eco-friendly bio-gels designed to minimize agricultural and watershed runoff, and engineer new photo-catalysts that drive chemical synthesis using harmless visible light instead of toxic reagents.

Joseph C. Furgal - Microwave chemistry, Silicone full circle recyclability, Sulfur chemistry, Natural based composites Bioremediation, and Greenhouse gas capturing materials

Malcolm D. E. Forbes - Physical Organic Chemistry, Photochemistry, ESR

Alexis D. Ostrowski - Inorganic Photochemistry, Biomaterials

Jayaraman Sivaguru - Organic/Supramolecular Photochemistry, Solid State Photochemistry, Photodegradable/recyclable polymers, Green Chemistry, Materials Chemistry

General Explanation: Organic chemistry is the study of the structure, properties, composition, reactions, and synthesis of carbon-containing compounds.

Relation to BGSU Chemistry: At BGSU, traditional organic synthesis is supercharged by Photochemical Sciences. Instead of using harsh heat or pressure to force carbon bonds to form, BGSU organic chemists specialize in Physical Organic Photochemistry. Faculty labs develop light-driven molecular switches, target visible-light responsive systems for chemical sensing, and use asymmetric photochemistry to build complex, 3D molecular architectures cleanly and precisely.

Pavel Anzenbacher Jr. - Supramolecular Chemosensors, Organic Photovoltaic Materials

Malcolm D. E. Forbes - Physical Organic Chemistry, Photochemistry, ESR

Joseph C. Furgal - Light defined polymer sequencing, Metal ligand chelation, Sulfur chemistry, and Photo initiated chemistry

Julie A. Peterson - Photoswitches, Photoresponsive materials, Photoinitiators, Covalent Adaptable Networks

Jayaraman Sivaguru - Organic/Supramolecular Photochemistry, Solid State Photochemistry, Photodegradable/recyclable polymers, Green Chemistry, Materials Chemistry

Massimo Olivucci - Computational Photochemistry and Photobiology

General Explanation: Physics is the fundamental science that studies matter, its motion through space and time, and the related concepts of energy and force.

Relation to BGSU Chemistry: You will often find Physics grouped alongside these chemistry fields at BGSU because of Optoelectronics and Nanomaterials. Joint faculty and physics-oriented labs (like the Sun, Zamkov, and Zayak groups) blur the lines between chemistry and physics. They synthesize colloidal nanocrystals, quantum dots, and 2D materials, evaluating their physical behaviors using Density Functional Theory (DFT) and advanced spectroscopy to develop next-generation photonic devices, solar cells, and LEDs.

Liangfeng Sun - Nanocrystal-based solar cells

Mikhail Zamkov - Optoelectronic Nanomaterials

Alexey T. Zayak - Atomistic DFT Simulations, Raman Spectroscopy