PPN Group
We use synthetic organic chemistry to prepare new organic compounds and functional nanomaterials. We have well-established laboratories and instrumentation facilities for the synthesis, characterization and studying the photochemical and photophysical properties of the newly synthesized materials.
The major ongoing projects include studying plasmon-molecule coupling in organic dye loaded metal nanoparticles, development of flexible organic single crystals, synthesis of novel luminescent organic materials and DNA analogues. These materials are then explored for applications in various fields ranging from cancer therapeutics to sensors and flexible electronic devices.
Recent Research Highlights
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Highly sensitive chemosensors developed for biologically relevant thiols and fluoride anions.
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Organic single crystals used for molecular logic operations, flexible optical waveguiding and thermosalience.
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Mechanism of plasmon-molecule coupling elucidated in dye-loaded metal nanoparticles which find application in PDT and cellular imaging.
Schiff Bases & Organoboron Compounds
Schiff bases are the condensation products of aldehydes/ketones and amines and are known to function as ligands for metal ions and boron. We work on synthesizing new Schiff bases from simple synthons and aim to tune their physical properties by systematically changing the aldehyde and amine moities. Boron complexation imparts excellent photophysical properties to Schiff bases because of the delocalization of lone-pair electrons of the hetero-atoms of the imines into the vacant p-orbital on boron. Apart from the unique photophysical properties, the ease of synthesis and structural robustness make boron-containing molecules ideal for a variety of applications. We have shown that these functionalized molecules could be used for optoelectronic and biological applications such as flexible optical wave-guiding, molecular logic gates, anti-counterfeiting, sensing, water purification and photodynamic therapy.
Recent Publications:
ACS Mater. Lett. 2022
J. Mater. Chem. B, 2022
ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 2022
Front. Chem., 2021
Cryst. Growth Des., 2021
Dye-loaded Nanocomposites
Plasmon-molecule coupling has emerged as a new modality for the development of photonic devices and optically responsive materials. Metal nanoparticles in combination with dyes provide a platform to construct hybrid materials whose photophysical properties may be tuned at the nanoscale. Molecules which absorb light near to the surface plasmon resonance absorption peak of metal nanoparticles can induce changes in the photophysical and electronic properties of metal nanoparticles through plasmon-molecule interactions. We prepare nanocomposites of common dye molecules using metal nanoparticles and study their photophysical and photochemical properties. We have shown that by systematically varying the functionalities on the dye molecules it is possible to modulate the photophysical and photochemical properties of the nanocomposites and allowed them to be used as photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy and as sensors for biologically relevant substrates.
Recent Publications:
J. Photochem. Photobiol. A: Chem., 2022
ACS Appl. Nano Mater., 2022
ChemPlusChem, 2021
Analyst, 2020
Chem. Commun., 2019
Nucleic Acid Analogues
Synthetic nucleic acids are widely used in fundamental research and also for applications in medical diagnosis and drug development. Some of them have been commercialized as drugs and several are undergoing clinical trials. We aim to develop new analogues of nucleosides and nucleic acids for therapeutic applications. We have shown that nucleoside analogues containing the hydrogen bonding face of the natural bases can be synthesized and that these molecules exhibit anti-cancer activity. We are also interested in developing new methodologies based on supramolecular chemistry to synthesize nucleic acid analogues which will add a new dimension to the nucleic acid chemistry.
Publications:
ChemistrySelect, 2020