Faculty

Dr. Xiaopeng Li

Associate Professor

Contact

Office: BSF 306
Phone: 813/974-8319
Lab: BSF 357 and 359
Email: xiaopengli1@usf.edu 

Education

B.S., Zhengzhou University, China, 2004
Ph.D., Cleveland State University, 2008
Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Akron, 2009 – 2012

Research

Our research is focused on metal-mediated supramolecular chemistry to construct a series of 2D and 3D architectures with precise shapes and sizes. Our specific research interests include:
1.Design, synthesis and self-assembly of giant supramolecules using multitopic ligands, which provide more geometric constraints to prevent the formation of multiple entities and to reach the most thermodynamically stable architectures.
2.Incorporating a wide variety of functional groups into the supramolecular core structures through either pre- or post-assembly modification.
3.Characterization of supramolecules using mass spectrometry, e.g., Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization (MALDI), Electrospray Ionization (ESI), and Ion Mobility-Mass Spectrometry (IM-MS).
4.Exploring the applications of these assemblies in diverse fields, such as host-guest chemistry, molecular recognition, reactivity modulation, catalysis, template-directed synthesis and biology.

Ultimately, fundamental advances in synthesis, self-assembly, and characterization of metallo-supramolecules will allow predictable incorporation of desired properties and functionality into supramolecular architectures with molecular level precision.