About

Michael Hopkins is a Professor in the Department of Chemistry at The University of Chicago, with research centered in inorganic and materials chemistry. His work focuses on understanding the relationships among the molecular and electronic structures of inorganic compounds and their photochemical, redox, and catalytic properties, especially as they relate to applications in renewable energy. He is involved in developing new classes of hybrid functional materials derived from supramolecular assembly on surfaces, employing synthetic chemistry, physical characterization methods, and computational studies. His research interests include artificial photosynthesis, molecular patterning of surfaces, and conjugated transition-metal materials. In artificial photosynthesis, he develops homogeneous molecular systems that store solar energy in chemical fuels, aiming to replace sacrificial reagents with renewable redox equivalents. His work includes the development of tungsten–alkylidyne photoredox chromophores that facilitate proton and electron transfer from H2 to reduction catalysts. In molecular patterning, he studies the surface chemistry of metalloporphyrins to create organized supramolecular structures on planar surfaces, with potential applications in solar energy conversion, sensing, and catalysis. His research on conjugated transition-metal materials involves creating metal-containing analogues of organic conjugated compounds to enhance optical and redox properties, exemplified by tungsten-containing oligo-phenylene-ethynylenes. Michael Hopkins earned his B.A. from the University of California, San Diego in 1980 and his Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology in 1986. He held postdoctoral and faculty positions at Los Alamos National Laboratory, the University of Pittsburgh, and has been a faculty member at The University of Chicago since 1999, where he has served as Chairman of the Department of Chemistry, Deputy Dean of the Physical Science Division, and Vice Provost for Strategic Planning. His contributions to the field have been recognized through numerous awards and honors, including the Arthur L. Kelly Prize for Exceptional Faculty Service, fellowship in the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and various research grants and fellowships.

Research topics

• Inorganic chemistry
• Medicinal chemistry
• Stereochemistry
• Chemistry
• Organic chemistry
• Crystallography

Selected publications

• Synthesis, Structure, and Bonding of d³ Molybdenum–Oxo Complexes

  Angewandte Chemie · 2020

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Chemistry
  • Crystallography
  • Stereochemistry

  Abstract Reduction of d 2 metal–oxo ions of the form [MO(PP) 2 Cl] + (M=Mo, W; PP=chelating diphosphine) produces d 3 MO(PP) 2 Cl complexes, which include the first isolated examples in group 6. The stability and reactivity of the MO(PP) 2 Cl compounds are found to depend upon the steric bulk of the phosphine ligands: derivatives with bulky phosphines that shield the oxo ligand are stable enough to be isolated, whereas those with phosphines that leave the oxo ligand exposed are more reactive and observed transiently. Magnetic measurements and DFT calculations on MoO(dppe) 2 Cl indicate the d 3 compounds are low spin with a 2 [(d xy ) 2 (π*(MoO)) 1 ] configuration. X‐ray crystallographic and vibrational‐spectroscopic studies on d 2 and d 3 [MoO(dppe) 2 Cl] 0/+ establish that the d 3 compound possesses a reduced M−O bond order and significantly longer Mo−O bond, accounting for its greater reactivity. These results indicate that the oxo‐centered reactivity of d 3 complexes may be controlled through ligand variation.

  PublisherDOI

• Synthesis, Structure, and Bonding of d³ Molybdenum–Oxo Complexes

  Angewandte Chemie International Edition · 2020 · 4 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Chemistry
  • Crystallography
  • Medicinal chemistry

  complexes may be controlled through ligand variation.

  PublisherDOI

• CCDC 1968304: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

  The Cambridge Structural Database · 2020-05-14

  datasetOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• CCDC 1968303: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

  The Cambridge Structural Database · 2020-05-14

  datasetOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Light-Driven Redox Activation of CO₂- and H₂-Activating Complexes in a Self-Assembled Triad

  The Journal of Physical Chemistry B · 2019-11-15 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  We report a self-assembled triad for artificial photosynthesis composed of a chromophore, carbon-dioxide reduction catalyst, and hydrogen-oxidation complex, which is designed to operate without conventional sacrificial redox equivalents. Excitation of the zinc-porphyrin chromophore of the triad results in ultrafast charge transfer between a tungsten-alkylidyne donor and a rhenium diimine tricarbonyl acceptor, producing a charge-separated state that persists on the time scale of tens of nanoseconds and is thermodynamically capable of the primary dihydrogen and carbon dioxide binding steps for initiating the reverse water-gas shift reaction. The charge-transfer behavior of this system was probed using transient absorption spectroscopy in the visible, near-infrared, and mid-infrared spectral regions. The behavior of the triad was compared with that of the zinc-porphyrin-rhenium-diimide dyad; the triad was found to have a significantly longer charge-separated lifetime than other previously reported porphyrin-rhenium diimine compounds.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• CCDC 1864879: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

  The Cambridge Structural Database · 2018-01-01

  datasetOpen access

  An entry from the Cambridge Structural Database, the world’s repository for small molecule crystal structures. The entry contains experimental data from a crystal diffraction study. The deposited dataset for this entry is freely available from the CCDC and typically includes 3D coordinates, cell parameters, space group, experimental conditions and quality measures.

  PublisherDOI

• CCDC 1864881: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

  The Cambridge Structural Database · 2018-01-01

  datasetOpen access

  An entry from the Cambridge Structural Database, the world’s repository for small molecule crystal structures. The entry contains experimental data from a crystal diffraction study. The deposited dataset for this entry is freely available from the CCDC and typically includes 3D coordinates, cell parameters, space group, experimental conditions and quality measures.

  PublisherDOI

• CCDC 1864880: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

  The Cambridge Structural Database · 2018-01-01

  datasetOpen access

  An entry from the Cambridge Structural Database, the world’s repository for small molecule crystal structures. The entry contains experimental data from a crystal diffraction study. The deposited dataset for this entry is freely available from the CCDC and typically includes 3D coordinates, cell parameters, space group, experimental conditions and quality measures.

  PublisherDOI

• Thermodynamic and Structural Factors That Influence the Redox Potentials of Tungsten–Alkylidyne Complexes

  ACS Catalysis · 2017-07-14 · 8 citations

  articleOpen access

  The thermodynamic and structural factors that influence the redox properties of an extensive set of tungsten–alkylidyne complexes (W(CR)L4X) are analyzed by combining synthesis, electrochemistry, and computational modeling based on free energy calculations of oxidation potentials at the density functional theory level. The observed linear correlations among oxidation potentials, HOMO energies, and gas-phase ionization energies are found to be consistent with the approximately constant solvation free energy differences between reduced and oxidized species over the complete set. The W–X bond length, trans to the alkylidyne ligand, is found to be a good descriptor of the positioning of the key frontier orbitals that regulate the redox properties of the complexes.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• CCDC 1427739: Experimental Crystal Structure Determination

  The Cambridge Structural Database · 2015-01-01

  datasetOpen accessSenior author

  An entry from the Cambridge Structural Database, the world’s repository for small molecule crystal structures. The entry contains experimental data from a crystal diffraction study. The deposited dataset for this entry is freely available from the CCDC and typically includes 3D coordinates, cell parameters, space group, experimental conditions and quality measures.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Vincent M. Miskowski

  California Institute of Technology

  46 shared

• Richard F. Dallinger

  Wabash College

  39 shared

• Joseph Manna

  31 shared

• Steven J. Geib

  University of Pittsburgh

  25 shared

• Harry B. Gray

  California Institute of Technology

  20 shared

• Kevin D. John

  14 shared

• R.E. Da Re

  Argonne National Laboratory

  14 shared

• Timothy C. Stoner

  University at Albany, State University of New York

  13 shared

Awards & honors

• Arthur L. Kelly Prize for Exceptional Faculty Service (2014)
• Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science…
• Camille and Henry Dreyfus Distinguished New Faculty Grant (1…
• National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator…
• Mike Hopkins receives the Arthur L. Kelly Prize for Exceptio…