Chemistry and Biochemistry

Miriam V. Bennett

Assistant Professor
Inorganic Chemistry

Office: GMCS 213B
Office Phone: 619-594-5481
e-mail: mbennett_at_sciences.sdsu.edu

Curriculum Vita

• B.S., University of Southern California
• Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley
• NIH Postdoc, Harvard University

Research Interests

Issues related to sustainable development and energy consumption will be addressed through synthetic inorganic and materials chemistry.

Clusters containing transition-metal carbide and group-III nitride cores are of interest for their catalytic, magnetic, and optical properties. An expository, systematic, synthetic approach in this undeveloped area of chemistry will result in new families of discrete molecular clusters, whose sizes approach or lie at the nano-scale regime. Potential applications of these clusters include new, more efficient catalysts, photovoltaics, surface coatings, light-emitting diodes, data storage materials, and biomedical imaging agents. In addition to potential applications, these studies will raise and answer fundamental scientific questions regarding bonding and the relationship of molecular clusters to bulk solids which will be of interest to the larger scientific community.

Selected Publications

1. Bennett, M. V.; Holm, R. H. “Self-Assembly of a Tetradecanuclear Iron Nitride Cluster.”  Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. Engl. 2006, 45, 5613-5616.
2. Freedman, D. E.; Bennett, M. V.; Long, J. R. "Symmetry-Breaking Substitutions of [Re(CN)₈]^3- into the Centered, Face-Capped Octahedral Clusters (CH₃OH)₂₄M₉M'₆(CN)₄₈ (M = Mn, Co; M' = Mo, W)" Dalton Trans. 2006, 2829-2834.
3. Friedle, S.; Partyka, D. V.; Bennett, M. V.; Holm, R. H. “Synthesis of Metal Dithiolene Complexes by Si-S Bond Cleavage of a Bis(silanylsulfanyl)alkene.”  Inorg. Chim. Acta 2006, 359, 1427-1434.
4. Bennett, M. V.; Stoian, S.; Bominaar, E. L.; Münck, E.; Holm, R. H. “Initial Members of the Family of Molecular Mid-Valent High-Nuclearity Iron Nitrides:  [Fe₄N₂X₁₀]^4- and [Fe₁₀N₈X₁₂]^5- (X = Cl^-, Br^-).” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127, 12378-12386.
5. Bennett, M. V.; Long, J. R. “New Cyanometalate Building Units:  Synthesis and Characterization of [Re(CN)₇]^3- and [Re(CN)₈]^3-.” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2003, 125, 2394-2395.
6. Bennett, M. V.; Beauvais, L. G.; Shores, M. P.; Long, J. R. “Expanded Prussian Blue Analogues Incorporating [Re₆Se₈(CN)₆]^3-/4- Clusters:  Adjusting Porosity via Charge Balance.” J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2001, 123, 8022-8032.
7. Bennett, M. V.; Shores, M. P.; Beauvais, L. G.; Long, J. R. “Expansion of the Porous Solid Na₂Zn₃[Fe(CN)₆]₂·9H₂O:  Enhanced Ion-Exchange Capacity in Na₂Zn₃[Re₆Se₈(CN)₆]₂·24H₂O.”J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2000, 122, 6664-6668.