Emilie Giacobbe

Northwestern University, Dept. of Chemistry
2190 Campus Drive
Ryan Hall 1033
Evanston, Il 60208

e-mail: egiacobbe@u.northwestern.edu

Education

BS with distinction in chemistry, Wheeling Jesuit University (Class of 2003)

Recipient of Haig Research Award for Undergraduate thesis work conducted under Prof. Norman V. Duffy. “The Synthesis of Various Metal Dithiocarbamate Complexes from Monosubstituted Amines for Photovoltaic Applications”

REU

University of Cincinnati, research work conducted under Prof. Bruce Ault on infared matrix isolation

Publication

Schierloh, Emilie; Ault, Bruce. Infrared Matrix Isolation and Theoretical Study of the Reactions of MoCl 4O and MoCl 2O 2 with CH 3OH: Characterization of Cl 3Mo(O)OCH 3. J. Phys. Chem. A 2003, 107, 2629-2634.

Ultrafast Intersystem Crossing and Spin Dynamics of Photoexcited Perylene-3,4:9,10-bis(dicarboximide) Covalently Linked to a Nitroxide Radical at Fixed Distances, E. M. Giacobbe, Q. Mi, M. T. Colvin, B. Cohen, C. Ramanan, A. M. Scott, T. J. Marks, M. A. Ratner, and M. R. Wasielewski, J. Am. Chem. Soc. (submitted). 

Teaching

“Super” TA for CHE 101 and 102, Fall 2003 – Winter 2004
Recipient of 2004-2005 L. Carroll King Award for Excellence in 100-Level Teaching

Positions Held

Service Chair for Phi Lambda Upsilon, Alpha Gamma Chapter
-Educational coordinator for Science in the Classroom (SITC) program

Controlling spin dynamics of complex multi-spin systems is a major goal in the quest for molecular electronics. A greater fundamental understanding of the factors controlling spin dynamics in these systems is necessary before the construction of spintronic devices is feasible. To work toward this goal, I have developed a series of chromophores linked to nitroxide free radicals. The t-butyl nitroxide radical, in addition to being very stable, has been shown to act as an electron donor to a naphthalene diimide acceptor, creating a long lived charge separated state. 1 I have attached both the t-butyl nitroxide radical (1 and 2) and TEMPO (3) to the perylene-3,4:9,10-bis(dicarboximide) (PDI) chromophore. Prior to photoexcitation of PDI, a microwave pulse can be applied to the system causing the radicals to align in a nonboltzman distribution of spins. After photoexciting the chromophore, electron transfer should take place from the free radical to the chromophore, carrying the spin information imparted to the system by the microwave pulse.

The fluorescence of normally highly emissive PDI was quenched entirely by addition of the nitroxide radical. Transient absorption spectroscopy was used to study the electron transfer process. Upon photoexcitation, however, it was found that rapid energy transfer from the PDI to the radical was too fast for electron transfer to compete. Instead, energy transfer caused the formation of a high yield of triplet PDI very quickly. These systems are now under investigation using time-resolved EPR to observe the interaction of the triplet PDI with the radical. We observe an intramolecular exchange mechanism which couples the doublet with the excited singlet state and through quantum mechanical mixing, generates 3*PDI.

	EPR of t-Butly Nitroxide Radical
	EPR of TEMPO Radical

1. S. Green, J. Phys. Chem.1995, 99, 14752.