Overview

We are a computational physical organic chemistry group at the University of Houston. We pursue the whys and what-ifs that underlie molecular properties and chemical reactivity. Some days we are organic chemists, and other days we are photochemists or supramolecular chemists. Our current interests include molecular photoswitches, carbon-rich polycyclic (anti)aromatic hydrocarbons, the design and control of photochemical reactions, and self-assembling hydrogen-bonded systems. A common thread in much of our work is the use of concepts such as ground- and excited-state aromaticity and antiaromaticity to guide reaction and molecular design.

Photoswitches and Energy Storage

Molecules that change shape upon irradiation can convert light energy into chemical energy. We develop molecular-level strategies to manipulate ground and excited-state potential energy surfaces, enabling control over how meta-stable molecules store and release energy.

Links to selected publications:
Chem. Commun. 2025, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2025.

Carbon-Rich π-Systems

Polycyclic (anti)aromatic hydrocarbons span a large chemical space with potential applications in optoelectronics, spintropics, and functional organic materials. In collaboration with experimentalists, we establish structure-property relationships related to π-expansion, substitution, and heteroatom doping.

Links to selected publications:
Chem. Sci. 2026, J. Org. Chem. 2025, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2023.

Excited-State Proton Transfer

Excited-state proton transfer (ESPT) is a reaction that relaxes the energy of a photoexcited organic compound by shifting the position of a proton. We recognized relief of excited-state antiaromaticity as a driving force and design strategy for ESPT processes in organic, supramoelcular, and biological systems.

Links to selected publications:
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2021, Chem. Sci. 2020, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 2019.

Aromaticity-Hydrogen Bonding

Despite being treated as largely separate concepts in chemistry textbooks, aromaticity and H-bonding can be coupled to control H-bond association and to modulate the electronic properties of catalytic systems, supramolecular assemblies, and functional organic molecules.

Links to selected publications:
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2020, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2019, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2014.