Inorganic chemists often use IR spectroscopy to evaluate bond order of ligands, and as a means of determining the electronic properties of metal fragments.
In this literature assignment, students are asked to read an article from the primary literature on a binuclear manganese-peroxo complex that is similar to species proposed to be involved in photosynthetic water splitting and DNA biosynthesis. The assignment contains 25 questions that are intended to guide students through the article and help them extract important information about the work. The completed questions are then used as the basis for an in-class discussion of model complexes, which leads to a more advanced discussion on the topic.
When teaching my advanced bioinorganic chemistry course, I extensively incorporate structures from Protein Data Bank in both my assignments and classroom discussions and mini-lectures. I also have students access structures both in and out of class as they complete assignments.
Introduction to classical and modern techniques for
synthesizing inorganic compounds of representative and transition
metal elements and the extensive use of IR, NMR, mass, and UV-visible
spectroscopies and other physical measurements to characterize
products. Syntheses and characterization of inorganic and organic
materials/polymers are included. Attendance at departmental seminars
required. Lecture, laboratory, oral presentations.
This exercise looks at the metal complexes of tropocoronand ligands, which were first studied by Nakanishi, Lippard, and coworkers in the 1980s. The size of the metal binding cavity in these macrocyclic ligands can be varied by changing the number of atoms in the linker chains between the aminotroponeimine rings, similar to crown ethers. These tetradentate ligands bind a number of +2 metal centers (Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, and Zn) and the geometry of the donor atoms around the metal center changes with the number of atoms in the linker chains.
Modern concepts of inorganic and transition-metal chemistry
with emphasis on bonding, structure, thermodynamics, kinetics and
mechanisms, and periodic and family relationships. Atomic structure,
theories of bonding, symmetry, molecular shapes (point groups), crystal
geometries, acid-base theories, survey of familiar elements, boron
hydrides, solid-state materials, nomenclature, crystal field theory,
molecular orbital theory, isomerism, geometries, magnetic and optical
phenomena, spectra, synthetic methods, organometallic compounds,
Inorganic chemists study the entire periodic table (even carbon—as long as it’s bound to a metal!) and are interested in the structure and reactivity of a wide variety of complexes. We will spend the first third of the course learning some “tools” and then will apply them to a variety of current topics in inorganic chemistry (bioinorganic chemistry, solid state materials, catalysis, nuclear chemistry, and more!).