Graduate Faculty
701-231-8694
Gregory R. Cook, Ph.D.
Michigan State University, 1993; Postdoctoral, Stanford
University, 1994-1996
Research Area:
Synthetic Organic Chemistry
Uwe Burghaus, Ph.D.
Free University of Berlin, 1995; Postdoctoral, University
of Genoa, Italy, 1995-1997
Research Area:
Surface Physical Chemistry
John F. Hershberger, Ph.D.
Yale University, 1986; Postdoctoral, Columbia University,
1986-1989
Research Area:
Experimental Physical Chemistry, Laser Kinetics
Denley Jacobson, Ph.D.
Purdue University, 1984; Postdoctoral, California Institute
of Technology, 1984-1986
Research Area:
Gas Phase Ion Chemistry
Sivaguru Jayaraman, Ph.D.
Tulane University, 2003; Postdoctoral, Columbia University, 2003-2006
Research Area:
Supramolecular Chemistry, Molecular Recognition, and Photoscience
Guodong Liu , Ph.D.
Hunan University, 2001; Postdoctoral, New Mexico State University, 2002-2004; Postdoctoral, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 2004-2006
Research Area:
Nanotechnology and Biological Sensing
Michael Page, Ph.D.
State University of New York at Buffalo, 1982;
Postdoctoral,
National Research Council/U.S. Army Ballistic Research Laboratory,
1982-1984
Research Area:
Theoretical Chemistry
Seth C. Rasmussen, Ph.D.
Clemson University, 1994; Postdoctoral, University of
Oregon, 1995-1999
Research Area:
Inorganic/Organic Materials Chemistry, Chemical History
Kenton R. Rodgers, Ph.D.
University of Iowa, 1988; Postdoctoral, Princeton University,
1989-1993
Research Area:
Inorganic and Bioinorganic Chemistry
Mukund P. Sibi, Ph.D.
City University of New York, 1980; Postdoctoral, Dartmouth
College, 1980-1982; Postdoctoral, University of Waterloo, 1982-1985
Research Area:
Synthetic Organic Chemistry; Natural Products
Wenfang Sun, Ph.D.
Institute of Photographic Chemistry, Chinese Academy
of Sciences, 1995; Postdoctoral, University of Alabama, Birmingham,
1997-1999
Research Area:
Organic Materials Chemistry
Dennis E. Tallman, Ph.D.
The Ohio State University, 1968; Postdoctoral, Cornell
University, 1968-1970
Research Area:
Electrochemistry, Materials
Pinjing Zhao, Ph.D.
Cornell University, 2003; Postdoctoral, Yale University, 2004-2006; Postdoctoral, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006-2007 Research Area:
Inorganic and Organometallic Chemistry
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Program Description
The Department of Chemistry and Molecular Biology offers programs leading to the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Chemistry. At the start of the first year of study, entering graduate students take entrance examinations in analytical, inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry , as well as biochemistry and molecular biology. The graduate student progress committee uses these exams for advisory purposes in recommending course work during the first year. As a consequence, programs are individually tailored to the needs of each student. Typically, coursework is completed in one to one-and-a-half years for M.S. candidates, and two years for Ph.D. candidates, leaving later years for full-time thesis research. The typical time to complete a graduate degree averages three years for the M.S. degree and approximately five years for the Ph.D.
Admissions Requirements
The graduate programs in Chemistry are open to all qualified graduates of universities and
colleges of recognized standing. To be admitted with full status
to the program, the applicant must
- Hold a baccalaureate degree from
an educational institution of recognized standing.
- Have adequate preparation in chemistry
and show potential to undertake advanced study and research
as evidenced by academic performance and experience.
- At the baccalaureate level, have
earned a cumulative grade point average (GPA) in all courses
of at least 3.0 or equivalent. Students with a previous graduate
degree with a GPA of at least 3.0 or equivalent may be admitted
in full standing.
Students who do not meet all requirements
for admission or have deficiencies in prerequisite course work,
but show potential for successful graduate study may be admitted
under a conditional status. Evidence must be provided showing
that the applicant's potential is not adequately reflected
by his/her record. After meeting the specified standards of performance
by the department, the student in consultation with the major
adviser may request a change to full graduate standing. The student
may not earn more than 12 semester hours of graduate credit in
the conditional status. The request for change must be submitted
to the Dean of the Graduate School by the major adviser and approved
by the department chair.
Applications will be considered at any time. Application materials should be submitted directly to the Graduate School and need to be received before May 1 to be considered for the upcoming academic year. Official transcripts (having an appropriate seal or stamp) of all previous undergraduate and graduate records must be received by The Graduate School before the application is complete. When a transcript is submitted in advance of completion of undergraduate or graduate studies, an updated transcript showing all course credits and grades must be provided prior to initial registration at North Dakota State University.
A complete application consists of :
- The Graduate School application for admission, which is also your application for financial assistance in the form of a Teaching Assistantship.
- Reasons for Graduate Study Statement. Please indicate your desired area of study: Organic, Inorganic, Analytical, Physical or undecided. (Multidisciplinary interests are also encouraged, but please state the major areas of study).
- Three letters of recommendation from individuals able to comment on your academic and research potential.
- An official transcript from all institutions of higher education that you have attended.
- Test score results for the GRE General examination. The GRE subject exam (in either Chemistry or Biochemistry) is preferred, but not required.
The TOEFL examination is required of international applicants whose first language is not English. Proficiency in oral and written communication in English must be demonstrated through on-campus exams/courses before a student can become a teaching assistant.
Financial Assistance
The student must first apply to The Graduate School and be accepted in full or conditional status before he/she is eligible for an assistantship in the Department of Chemistry and Molecular Biology.
Graduate students in the Department of Chemistry and Molecular Biology are supported during both the academic year and during summer months by either teaching assistantships (TA) or research assistantships (RA). As of the 2007-2008 academic year, the standard monthly stipend is $1,683 per month for TAs and RAs. Graduate tuition (except for a student activity fee) is waived for all TAs and RAs in good academic standing.
Degree Requirements
The Master of Science program requires the
completion of a total of 30 graduate semester credits with an
overall GPA of 3.0 or better. This total is comprised of both
class work and research credit, but must consist of at least 16
semester credits from letter-graded course work. The Ph.D. program
requires the completion of a total of 90 graduate semester credits
with an overall GPA of 3.0 or better. This total is comprised
of both class work and research credit, but must consist of at
least 27 semester credits from letter-graded course work.
Each student chooses a thesis adviser within six months of beginning graduate school. As this is one of the most important decisions made in graduate school, students are strongly urged to visit multiple faculty members to discuss research opportunities. In addition, faculty seminars during the fall semester are designed to acquaint new students with the available research programs.
By the end of the first academic year, each student selects an advisory and examination committee, which consists of the thesis adviser, two other faculty members in the chemistry department, and one faculty member from a department outside the College of Science and Mathematics.
Admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree is accomplished by
satisfying three requirements: 1) satisfactory performance in
course work with a minimum 3.0 grade-point average, 2) satisfactory
performance in cumulative examinations which are administered
six times per year, and 3) satisfactory defense of an original
research proposal on a topic approved by the student's advisory
committee. The defense of this proposal must occur at least eight
months prior to the final oral examination. Following completion
of dissertation research, the candidate must complete a written
dissertation and an oral presentation to the department and advisory
committee.
Research Opportunities and Infrastructure
The Department of Chemistry and Molecular Biology has more than 10 externally funded faculty research programs. Research expenditures have averaged $1.8 million over the last 10 years, with more than $2.2 million in the last 2 years.
All research and most teaching activities within the department occur within three centrally-located buildings, including two connected facilities, Ladd Hall and Dunbar Laboratory, as well as the Industrial and Agricultural Communications Center (IACC) located across the street. Most departmental offices, classrooms and teaching labs as well as some research labs are located in Ladd Hall, while Dunbar and the third floor of the IACC primarily consists of research laboratories. Ladd Hall also houses departmental glass, machine, and electronics shops.
Modern instrumentation is vital to research in the chemical sciences. The quality and quantity of instrumentation within the department has been greatly enhanced in the last few years through aggressive fund-raising efforts and university matching support.
The department has recently upgraded its mass spectrometry capabilities to include a Bio-TOF III with accurate mass analysis, ESI and CI ionization; as well as an Esquire 3000 Plus - an Ion trap instrument with MS-MS and proteomics capabilities. A dedicated LC can be integrated with the both the instruments.
The Organic Spectroscopy Laboratory is primarily devoted to maintenance and operation of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectrometers. The recently upgraded facility includes three modern high-field instruments: Varian 500, 400, and 300 MHz spectrometers. All have multinuclear, 2-D, and variable temperature capabilities, and the 400 MHz instrument has been recently upgraded for solids capabilities. This center also includes the departmental FTIR.
The Materials Characterization Laboratory houses the departmental crystallography faculties including a Bruker single crystal CCD X-ray diffractometer with low temperature capabilities, a Philips MPD (Multi-Purpose Diffractometer), two Philips X-ray powder diffractometers, and a Kevex X-ray fluorescence unit. CHN Elemental analysis, thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and differential thermal analysis (DTA) are also available.
The Center for Protease Research - Core Biology Facility is a new facility housing equipment and technical personnel for performing bioassay, cell and tissue culture, and molecular biology experiments. For bioassays, the facility has a fluorimeter capable of top or bottom reading and the capability to handle both 96- and 384-well plates. For sample preparation, researchers can utilize cell and tissue culture capabilities such as flow hoods and culture chambers. In addition, RT-PCR and FPLC protein purification technology is available.
The chemistry library, located in Ladd Hall, provides graduate students and faculty with convenient 24-hour access to more than 200 journals and approximately 10,000 volumes. Literature searching via SciFinder is supported.
Prospective students are encouraged to visit the Department of Chemistry and Molecular BIology Web site (www.chem.ndsu.nodak.edu) for the latest descriptions of research programs and instrumentation.
Courses Offered
- 625 Inorganic Chemistry I 3
- Electronic structure and bonding, acid-base
and redox chemistry, symmetry and point groups, main group and
transition metal chemistry. Prereq: Chem 364.
626 Crystallography/Crystal Chemistry 2- Geometric and space group crystallography.
Structure and bonding in common minerals and industrially important
solids. Structure-property relationships. Half semester. Cross-listed
with Geol.
627 X-Ray Diffraction 2- Analytical X-Ray powder diffraction
for qualitative and quantitative analysis of crystalline solids.
Crystal structure analysis using powder methods. Introduction
to X-Ray fluorescence spectrometry. Half semester. Cross-listed
with Geol.
628 Geochemistry 3- See Geology for description.
632, 632L Analytical Chemistry II, Lab 4- Theory and application of modern instrumental
techniques, including spectroscopy and electrochemistry. Prereq:
Chem 431, 431L.
635 Chemical History 2 - Survey of the history of the chemical sciences from the stone age through the early 1900's. Half semester
724 Group Theory 1- Molecular symmetry and its application
to spectroscopy and bonding. Half semester.
725 Inorganic Chemistry II 3- Molecular orbital and valence bond theories,
spectroscopy, inorganic reactions, and mechanisms. Prereq: Chem
625, 724.
726 Photochemistry & Photophysics 2 - Principles underlying the photophysics and photochemical reactivity of organic, coordination, and organometallic compounds. Introduction to photochemical and photophysical experimental techniques. Half semester. Prereq: Chem 625, 724.
727 Organometallic Chemistry 2- Synthesis, reactivity, and bonding in
organometallic compounds. Half semester. Prereq: Chem 625, 724.
728 Physical Methods in Inorganic Chemistry 2- Physical methodology especially appropriate
to the characterization of inorganic and organometallic compounds.
Includes electronic, vibrational, electron spin resonance, Mössbauer,
and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Prereq: Chem 625,
724.
729 X-Ray Structure Determination 2- Use of single crystal X-Ray diffraction
data to determine molecular crystal structures. Half semester.
Prereq: Chem 626 or 627.
730 Separations 4 - Theory, instrumentation, and analytical
applications of chemical separation methods. Major emphasis
is placed on modern chromatographic techniques and electrophoresis.
Prereq: Chem 432/632 or equiv.
732 Electrochemistry 4- Theory and application of modern electrochemical
methods, including potentiometry, voltammetry, electrochemical
impedance spectroscopy, kinetics and mechanisms of electrode
processes, corrosion, simulation techniques, and instrumentation.
Prereq: Chem 432/632.
734 Instrumentation Electronics 5- Design and operation of digital and
analog circuits used in chemical instrumentation, computer interfacing.
Includes laboratory. Prereq: Chem 432/632.
736 Mass Spectrometry 2- Theory and application of mass spectrometry
in analysis, tandem mass spectrometry, ionization techniques.
Half semester. Prereq: Chem 432/632.
737 Gas Phase Ion Chemistry 2- Principles and applications of gas phase
ion techniques to the study of the chemical and physical properties
of reactive intermediates. Half semester. Prereq: Chem 736.
741 Physical Organic Chemistry I 4- Principles governing the reactivity
of organic compounds and the methods of determining reaction
mechanisms.
742 Physical Organic Chemistry II 2- Aromaticity, electrophilic substitution,
Woodward-Hoffman rules. Half semester. Prereq: Chem 741.
743 Reactive Intermediates 2- Radicals, carbenes, nitrenes, arynes,
carbenium ions, survey of other reactive intermediates. Half
semester. Prereq: Chem 741.
744 Organic Spectroscopy 2- Structure elucidation by spectrometric
methods, including infrared, mass spectroscopy, UV, and nuclear
magnetic resonance. Interpretation of 2-D NMR spectra. Half
semester.
745 Organic Synthesis 2- Functional group synthesis, synthetic
design, stereochemical control. Half semester. Prereq: Chem
741.
746 Advanced NMR Spectroscopy 2- Theory of pulsed FT-NMR, instrumentation,
pulse sequences (with emphasis on multipulse experiments), 2-D
NMR, and applications. Half semester. Prereq: Chem 744.
754 Organic Spectroscopy Laboratory 1- Laboratory to accompany Chemistry 744,
with emphasis on NMR techniques. Half semester. Coreq: Chem
744.
759 Intermediate Physical Chemistry 3- Fundamental principles of physical chemistry,
including quantum chemistry, spectroscopy, molecular thermodynamics,
and kinetics.
760 Statistical Thermodynamics 4- Macroscopic and microscopic models for
the study of equilibrium properties of pure phases and solutions.
Prereq: Chem 365.
761 Optical Spectroscopy 2- Theory and practice of modern spectroscopic
methods. Emphasis on visible and ultraviolet wavelength ranges.
Half semester. Prereq: Chem 632.
763 Kinetics 2- Experimental methods to determine reaction
rates, empirical rate laws, transition state theory. Half semester.
Prereq: Chem 365.
764 Dynamics 2- Chemical physics of energy transfer
and reactive collisions. Half semester. Prereq: Chem 763.
766 Quantum Chemistry I 4- Wave functions and their properties,
quantum mechanical behavior of atoms and molecules. Prereq:
Chem 365.
767 Quantum Chemistry II 2- Ab initio and semi-empirical methods
for the calculation of energetic and structural properties of
molecules; computational methods. Half semester. Prereq: Chem
766.
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- 790 Graduate Seminar 1-3
-
- 793 Individual Study/Tutorial
1-5
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- 796 Special Topics 1-5
-
- 798 Master's Thesis 1-10
-
- 799 Doctoral Dissertation 1-15
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