MRI: Acquisition of a Time-Resolved Fluorescence Instrument for Chemistry Research and Education

有了这项来自主要研究仪器(MRI)计划的奖项，Patrick M.Hare教授和他的同事Stefan Paula和Keith A.Walters将把一台荧光计升级为皮秒时间分辨的可变激发波长仪器，这将加强北肯塔基大学的研究和教育项目。新的能力将使三个领域的研究受益：1)富勒烯-过渡金属体系的有机金属超分子化学；2)Sarco/内质网ATPase(SERCA)新型抑制剂的光谱表征；以及3)内分泌干扰化合物的光物理。发射寿命荧光光谱仪测量被光源提升到激发状态的样品发出的光的时间衰减。这提供了对化学和生物系统中能量转移和损失的机制的洞察。它可以揭示底物如何与酶相互作用的信息，或者新材料可以用于太阳能电池，以及其他可能的应用。该仪器将用于本科生的研究和实验室课程。

With this award from the Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program, Professor Patrick M. Hare and his colleagues Stefan Paula and Keith A. Walters will upgrade a fluorometer to a picosecond time-resolved, variable excitation wavelength instrument that will enhance both the research and education programs at Northern Kentucky University. Three areas of research will be benefit from the new capability: 1) Organometallic Supramolecular Chemistry of Fullerene-Transition Metal Systems; 2) Spectroscopic Characterization of Novel Inhibitors of the Sarco/endoplasmic Reticulum ATPase (SERCA); and 3) Photophysics of Endocrine Disrupting Compounds. Emission lifetime fluorescence spectrophotometers measure the time decay of the light emitted from a sample that has been promoted to an excited state by a light source. This provides insight on the mechanisms of energy transfer and loss in chemical and biological systems. It can reveal information on how substrates interact with enzymes or new materials can be used in solar cells, among other possible applications. The instrument will be used in research and laboratory classes by undergraduate students.