Robert J. Hamers Professor Address/E-mail Program Affiliations Education Fields of Interest Publications Summary For additional information, see my

Contact Information

3357 F. Daniels And J.H. Mathews Chemistry Building 1101 University Avenue Madison, WI 53706

Tel: 608/262-6371 or 608/263-4450 E-mail: hamers@chem.wisc.edu

Program Affiliations

• Materials Science Program
• Chemistry

Education

• PhD, Cornell University

Fields of Interests

• physical and chemical propertes of molecular-based materials
• molecular electronics
• nanoscale assembly techniques for molecular systems
• chemical and structural characterization of surfaces
• interfaces between inorganic materials and organic/biological materials

Publications

• R.J. Hamers, J. S. Hovis, S. Lee, H. Liu, and J. Shan, "Formation of Ordered, Anisotropic Organic Monolayers on the Si(001) Surface", J. Phys. Chem. 101, 1489-1492 (1997).
• D.F. Padowitz and R.J. Hamers, "Voltage Dependent STM Images of Covalently Bound Molecules on Si(100)", Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 102 (43), 8541 -8545, 1998.
• H.Z. Zhang, R.L. Penn, R.J. Hamers, J.F. Banfield, "Enhanced adsorption of molecules on surfaces of nanocrystalline particles", Journal of Physical Chemistry B 103, 4656-4662 (1999).
• J.S. Hovis, R.J. Hamers, et al, "Cycloaddition Chemistry at Surfaces: Reaction of Alkenes with the Diamond(001)-2x1 Surface, Journal of the American Chemical Society, 122, 732-733 (2000).
• Robert J. Hamers, Sarah K. Coulter, Mark D. Ellison, Jennifer S. Hovis, David F. Padowitz, and Michael P. Schwartz, "Cycloaddition Chemistry of Organic Molecules with Semiconductor Surfaces", Accounts of Chemical Research, in press (2000).
• M. Schwartz, M. Ellison, S.K. Coulter, M.D. Ellison, and R.J. Hamers, " Interaction of pi-conjugated organic molecules with pi-bonded semiconductor surfaces: Structure, selectivity, and mechanistic implications". J. Am. Chem. Soc. (JACS), in press (2000).
• M. M. McGuire, K. J. Edwards, J.F. Banfield , and R.J. Hamers, "Surface chemistry of sulfide minerals during microbially mediated oxidative dissolution", Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Submitted for publication 10/99
• T. Strother, W. Cai, X. Zhao, R.J. Hamers, and L.M. Smith, "Synthesis and Characterization of DNA-modified Si(111) Surfaces", J. Am. Chem. Soc. (JACS) 122, 1205-1209 (2000).

Summary

Our research is aimed at achieving a true atomic-level understanding of structure, bonding, and reactivity at solid surfaces, and using this ability to develop new materials with novel functionality. Recent developments in the microelectronics industry are leading to great interest in the behavior of molecular materials and the possibility of using molecules as electronic devices. Interfaces between silicon and biological materials are also of increasing interest. We do research aimed at understanding the interaction of organic and biological molecules with solid surfaces of Si, Ge, and diamond, with the goal of producing high-quality functional interfaces between inorganic materials and organic materials. Individual research projects can range anwhere from very fundamental studies of molecule-surface bonding and structure, to applications of this knowledge to new and emerging fields such as biotechnology (gene chips, silicon-based DNA sequencing methods) and molecular electronics (using organic molecules as "wires" or optical/electronic devices). Our research program encompasses a wide variety of experimental methods for characterization of chemical composition, electronic properties, and atomic-level structure. We also utilize first-principles computational methods for understanding molecular behavior and properties.

We have several collaborations with Professor Jillian Banfield (Dept. of Geology and Geophysics) investigating structural and chemical properties of mineral surfaces, Professor Lloyd Smith (Dept. of Chemistry) investigating surface-based DNA hybridization methods, and with Dr. John Russell (Naval Research Labs) investigating surface functionalization of diamond and related materials. Complete details on all projects can be found on our website, http://hamers.chem.wisc.edu/