BSc, PhD, 1993
Current Job Title: Lecturer in Inorganic Chemistry
Employer: Manchester Metropolitan University
The year I spent in Dunedin was a hugely enjoyable experience on both a personnel and professional level. Sally and my work mates in lab were fantastic people to have as colleagues and I was instantly made to feel very welcome. The chemistry department at Otago is lively place to be and has a rich and diverse range of active research areas, with a particularly strong inorganic section. During my time at Otago I was involved in the synthesis and coordination chemistry of thiophenolate-containing macrocyclic ligands. Such ligands were used to form dinuclear mu-2-dithiolate-bridged units with iron and nickel, in an attempt to model the active sites of [Ni-Fe] and [Fe-only] hydrogenases. This is a demanding, but absorbing area of modern bioinorganic chemistry and a hot topic that is currently attracting increased attention from coordination chemists around the world. Apart from the science, Dunedin is a very pleasant city in which to live, with a wealth of natural charm and history. In fact the whole of the south island of New Zealand is a rare unspoiled paradise. A chance to study in this corner of the antipodes is not to be missed and it has become a personnel ambition some day to return to New Zealand.
Contact details
Department of Chemistry & Materials
The Manchester Metropolitan University
Faculty of Science and Engineering
John Dalton Building
Chester Street
Manchester M1 5GD
UK.
Tel. +44 (0) 161-247-1430
Fax. +44 (0) 161-247-6357
p.smith@mmu.ac.uk
Background
I am a graduate in Chemistry from the University of Nottingham, UK, BSc (86-89) and PhD (89-93) with Dr A. H. Wright. I have also had postdoctoral appointments at the University of Manchester, UK (93-97) with Prof C.D.Garner/Dr D.Collison, the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand (97-98) with Dr S.A.Brooker, and at the School of Chemistry, University of Melbourne, Australia (98-99) with A/Prof C.GYoung. I am currently employed as Lecturer in Inorganic Chemistry at the Manchester Metropolitan University, UK (99-present). My research track record has covered a wide range of topics concerned with the coordination chemistry of d-transition metals. These experiences have included organic synthesis in the preparation of ligands, organometallic and bioinorganic chemistry. This work has required a strong background in synthetic chemistry, along with a healthy knowledge of a variety of spectroscopic, electrochemical and analytical techniques. My key research interests (see below for details) involve ligand design for the modeling of important biological facets such as metal-ion selectivity and the active sites metalloproteins.
Contact: Dr. Paul D. Smith, Manchester Metropolitan University