Tom Teets, PhD

Tom’s thesis is entitled Halogen-Elimination Photochemistry and Oxygen-Activation Chemistry of Late-Transition Metal Complexes, describing research performed in the area of inorganic chemistry in the laboratory of Professor Dan Nocera. Tom’s work made advances in the field of photocatalytic hydrogen production using single-component photocatalysts, and also unveiled mechanistic details of oxygen reduction and activation reactions of metal hydride complexes. In 2010, Tom received a Graduate Student Award from the International Precious Metals Institute, and in 2012 a Young Investigator Award from the American Chemical Society in recognition of his graduate research. Tom is currently an assistant professor of chemistry at the University of Houston, researching synthetic strategies to control and optimize the photophysical and photochemical properties of organometallic compounds.