We are delighted to announce that Dr. CHEN Tianxiang, ABCT PhD graduate under the supervision of Dr. Benedict Lo, has received the FS Outstanding PhD Thesis Award 2022/23.
The FS Outstanding PhD Thesis Awards Scheme aims to recognize the outstanding PhD students in the Faculty of Science for the high quality of their theses produced during their studies at PolyU.
Dr. CHEN’s research focuses on the rational design and characterisation of atomically precise 3d metal clusters in zeolites. And he is greatly interested in the structure‐activity correlations of supported metal clusters in reactions by exploiting a combination of state-of-art characterisation techniques. His winning thesis is entitled “Precise synthesis of Cu-based metal nanoclusters in zeolites and the structure-catalysis investigations”.
Supported single-atoms (SAs) and metal nanoclusters (NCs) are well-known as next-generation nanomaterials. Great efforts have been made to engineer the electronic and geometric properties of the metal moiety(ies) in SAs and NCs, for instance, the coordination environment, metal compositions, and host materials. Contributing to the development of advanced characterisation techniques, a comprehensive comprehension of the electronic and geometric properties of SAs and NCs can be achieved.
Dr. CHEN’s thesis focuses on the precise synthesis of supported NCs with high accuracy. Capitalizing on the fundamental principles of coordination chemistry and solid-state chemistry, a stepwise assembly strategy has been proposed for the synthesis of multinuclear copper-based NCs within zeolite supports. By utilizing cutting-edge structural elucidation techniques, the electronic and geometric structures of the NCs have been unravelled, and their atomic-level structure-activity relationships have been extensively discussed. This thesis demonstrates the remarkable ability to manipulate the geometric and electronic structure of metal clusters at an atomic level.
Let’s us take this chance to congratulate Dr. CHEN and honor his incredible achievement.
