Group Members

Nick Staudaher

Hobbies: In his spare time Nick enjoys skiing, rock climbing, biking, and generally being outside.

Year:  5^th year Graduate Student

Contact:nstaudaher@gmail.com

Research Project

Nick is studying the reactivity of nickel pi complexes, including the mechanism of formation of (Xantphos)Ni(alkyne) complexes and the mechanism of decomposition of (dppf)Ni(ketene) complexes. The findings of these studies explain why certain catalytic reactions are productive, when previous mechanistic work indicated that the catalysts are readily deactivated.

Nathan Spahn

About me: I am originally from the middle-of-nowhere Indiana and I completed my undergraduate studies at Indiana University. 

Hobies: I spend most of my free time hiking with my dog or at dog parks.  I also enjoy good books, television and video games.  Since moving to Utah, I've attempted to pick up skiing in the winters and more recently, climbing.

Year: 5th year Graduate Student

Contact: nspahn@chem.utah.edu 

Research Project

Cycloaddition chemistry is an atom-economic way to form useful, complex products.  Many of these products are substituted carbocycles.  Chemoselectivity issues arise when heteroatoms are used, and I have helped to develop an iron-catalyzed cycloaddition forming pyridines from cyanamides and terminal alkynes.  The reaction is both chemo- and regioselective, which is a great improvement over current pyridine-forming cycloaddition reactions.  I am also interested in the mechanism of this reaction, and to that effect, have been synthesizing possible reaction intermediates to gather a better understanding of both how the reaction works, and how the iron system contributes to the regioselectivity that we observe.

Nabajit Lahiri

About me: I am originally from India. I completed my Bachelor of Science from Presidency University, India and my Master of Science from Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India.

Hobbies: Playing my guitar, going for a hike and Photography.

Year: 5^th year Graduate Student

Contact: nabajitlahiri@gmail.com

Research Project

My research involves the synthesis and characterization of 2D π-conjugated Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) that have a honey-comb lattice structure. These MOFs, generally, show high electrical conductivities which make them perfect materials for fabricating electronic devices. My ultimate goal, however, is to realize 2D Organometallic Topological Insulators (OTIs) which would have immense potential in quantum computing and spintronic devices.

Stephanie Felten

About me: I was born in Germany and raised in a small town close to Hannover.  I completed my Bachelor of Science at the Technical University of Braunschweig in Germany under Supervision of Prof. Dr. Matthias Tamm.  My love next to Chemistry is being interactive with other people.  Each day needs to be created by yourself to be the happiest day of your life.

Hobbies: Horseback riding, baking, sports, and books.

Year: 3^rd year Graduate Student

Contact: steph.felten@utah.edu 

My current research project focuses on Nickel- N-heterocyclic carbene - catalyzed cyclization reactions to access biological active carbo- and heterocyclic substructures.  Furthermore, I am interested in the discovery and study of new ligand systems for their efficiency in transition-metal catalyzed cyclization reactions.

Andy Clevenger

About me: Outside of the lab I hike and backpack in the summer and ski in the winter.  I play horn in the Campus Symphony and Utah Philharmonia at the U’s School of Music.  I am also training to run a marathon.

Year: 3^rd year Graduate Student

Contact: alcleven@chem.utah.edu

Research Project

My research investigates the potential reactivity of carbon dioxide, which is normally inert.  Previous work in the Louie Group has shown that stable Ni-ketene complexes can be isolated and studied.  The goal of my project is to synthesize stable Ni-CO2 complexes and then turn these complexes into stable Ni-ketene complexes by adding a phosphonium ylide. 

 Bri Esslinger

About me: I grew up in Northwest Wisconsin, surrounded by pine trees, corn fields and cows. I completed my bachelor’s degree at St. Norbert College, then moved out west to come to the U. I live in the city with my husband, my cat, and my dog.

Hobbies: Anime, gardening, baking, and napping.

Year: 2^nd year Graduate student

Contact: brianna.esslinger@gmail.com

Research Project

I’m working on a novel synthesis of (+)-septicine using chemistry developed by previous members of the Louie Group. The key reaction step is a cycloaddition of azetidinone and aryl-substituted alkynes. By completing this project, we will be able to access many alkaloids related to septicine, just by changing the starting materials.

 Noman Al

About me: Originally I am from Los Angeles, where I finished my high school and my undergraduate at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Year: 2^nd year Graduate student

Contact:  noman.al@utah.edu

Research Project

My current research project under Dr. Janis Louie involves the synthesis of organophosphine-metal ligands in order to study their stability using NMR. The goal of my project is to further characterize the stability of the ligands by the addition of ketene groups in order to synthesize ketene complexes.  In my free time, I enjoy recreation activities such as rock climbing, hiking, and listening to music. I enjoy long drives through mountains as it helps me to be calm.

Jonas Renner

About me: Originally I am from Germany, finished my Bachelor Degree at the TU Braunschweig and am fortunate enough to continue my studies here in Utah. I love the mountains and National Parks and try to visit them regularly to relax and recover.

Hobbies: Gym, Running, Skiing, Hiking.

Year: 2^nd year Graduate student

Contact:  jonas.renner@utah.edu

 Research Project

 I am investigating cycloadditions to selectively synthesize pyridines via iron(phosphine) catalysts. Our group already developed an iron-catalyzed cycloaddition forming pyridines from cyanamides and terminal alkynes. My goal is to extend our arsenal to synthesize more heteroarenes selectively.

Thanakorn K. Baker (TK)

About me: I’m originally from Kanchanaburi, Thailand. Formerly, I was a painter and a charcoal artist before I fell in love with organic chemistry. 

Hobbies: Kickboxing, drawing, and playing with kids

Year: 3rd Undergraduate Student 

Contact:u0906641@utah.edu

Research Project

The discovery of new ligand systems is an important tool in organometallic chemistry to optimize reactions. My current research project involves the assistance to synthesize optimized NHC-ligands, which are shown a high efficiency in transition- metal catalyzed cyclization reactions.

Mia Yu

About me: I am a junior in West High School's IB program. I'm interested in chemistry and biology, and am interested in pursuing a career in medicine.

Hobbies: Traveling, playing tennis and skiing.

Contact: miayu200088@gmail.com

Research Project

Isolation of intermediate species is a powerful tool in determining the mechanism of a reaction. To assist with the isolation of intermediates, I am working to create modified ligands that possess more favorable properties for growing single crystals.

Ashley Howell

About me: I am 16 years old and will be a junior at Hillcrest High School this fall. I enjoy working with my hands, engineering, and reading, and I hope to enter a STEM related career in the future.

Hobbies: Piano, robotics, and mock trial

Contact: ashley.howell8765@gmail.com

Research Project

Various two dimensional materials are perfect for manufacturing electronic devices due to their high electrical conductivities. To aid research in this area, I am working on creating the precursors needed to make these materials.