Colorado State University

Solid-state and materials chemistry. Our research revolves around understanding and controlling the formation of materials, their structure and their properties, i.e., materials by design. We focus on manipulating and understanding local chemical environments and their influences on electronic properties (e.g., magnetism) in new materials.   Details of the atomistic structures of materials are obtained from advanced synchrotron X-ray and time-of-flight neutron scattering and spectroscopic methods.  The overarching theme is correlating structural details of materials with their functional behavior in the development of new and efficient materials of relevance to energy conversion and conservation, for example, new hard magnetic materials and semiconductors for solar energy conversion. The approach is based on asking the question: How does one selectively position (and then find) atoms within a bulk solid? The same overarching chemical perspectives apply to the area of biomineralization as well, particularly to that of bone remodeling. This is an interdisciplinary problem fundamentally rooted in inorganic chemistry, and with profound implications for human and animal disease.