Welcome to the Eckhardt Lab!
 Our research focuses on the preparation, characterization and reactivity of small reactive intermediates and molecules related to interstellar media and prebiotic chemistry. For the preparation and spectroscopic characterization of these molecules we employ (in)organic synthesis, photolysis or high-vacuum flash pyrolysis in combination with cryogenic matrix isolation spectroscopy (IR, UV/Vis and EPR). All prepared molecular structures are validated by comparison of experimental and quantum chemical calculated properties. |      |
Für alle RUB-Studenten:
Wir suchen motivierte und ehrgeizige Studenten, die Spaß an der Synthese haben und darüber hinaus Interesse mitbringen neue Techniken, wie die Matrixisolationsspektroskopie oder quantenmechanische Berechnungen für den Laboralltag zu erlernen. Das Arbeiten in einer jungen Arbeitsgruppe bietet einige Vorteile:
- direkte Zusammenarbeit mit dem Betreuer: besseres Erlernen neuer Laborfähigkeiten
- großes Interesse, dass die Projekte funktionieren und zügig abgeschlossen werden
- große Eigenverantwortung und Selbstständigkeit
- große Mitverantwortung in der Labororganisation
- mehr Flexibilität bei der Projektauswahl
- In einer kleinen Gruppe kommt es auf jedes Mitglied an und alle zählen mehr!
Wer als einer der ersten Vertiefungspraktikanten, Bachelor-, Master- oder Doktoranden frühzeitig die Arbeitsgruppe mitformen und mitgestalten möchte, ist herzlich eingeladen, Kontakt aufzunehmen (einfach vorbeikommen oder E-Mail schicken), um weitere Details zu besprechen. Promotionsstellen sind ebenfalls vorhanden.
For all non-RUB members:
You are a postdoctoral researcher and interested in joining the group? We are happy to support you in your grant application at funding agencies such as Alexander von Humboldt Foundation or the Marie Skłodowska-Curie program.
Fully funded PhD position available! Please contact André directly via E-Mail.
You are a current Master or PhD student in chemistry? Win a paid three-month research stay in our group and take part at the RESOLV student challenge 2024! (Deadlines: 12/01/2024)
| September 2024 Ivan Shchus and Olga Vorobyova won a research stay in our group in the Resolv Student Challenge "Your Step into Solvation Science". They will stay with us for the next three months and investigate cryosolvation effects. |  |
| August 2024 Adrián Portela González joined the group as a second postdoc. He will mainly work on our matrix isolation EPR experimental setup. André attended the BioOrganik24 symposium in Dortmund. |  |
| June and July 2024 André attended the 26. Steinheimer Gespräche and was invited to presented the group's research at the CPLT2024 in Niseko (Japan). CPLT2026 will take place in Bochum and be co-organized by us and the Merten Lab. Hasan Gören joined the group for three months as an Erasmus fellow. |  |
| May 2024 Shahid Iqbal, Daniel Kühn, and Media Mohamad started an in-depth practical in our group. Mika Maehara joined the group as a first postdoc. |  |
| April 2024 Anahita Safiyan won a DAAD scholarship and joined the group as a third PhD student. André presented the group's research at the Clausius Institute for Physical and Theoretical Chemistry in Bonn. | |
| March 2024 André presented the group's results at the Chemiedozententagung 2024 in Aachen. Viktor, Vladimir and André attended the RESOLV Klausurtagung 2024. Finally, our new IR spectrometer arrived! |  |
| February 2024 André visited the Kaiser group in Honolulu and presented the group's results at the Third Laboratory Astrophysics Workshop in Kapaa, Kauai, Hawaii. |  |
| December 2023 We got accepted in the Emmy Noether programme of the DFG. In the next six years we will explore more reactive intermediates in interstellar ice analogs. Further information is available here. | |
| November 2023 Kristin Wulff joined the group for an in-depth practical. She will learn more about organic synthesis and matrix isolation spectroscopy. |  |
| October 2023 Anahita Safiyan joined the group under RESOLV's program for Iranian researchers. She will learn more about solvation effects in organic synthesis. |  |
| October 2023 Julian Eßer joined the group for an in-depth practical. He will learn more about organic synthesis, computational chemistry and matrix isolation spectroscopy. |  |
| September 2023 Next step in the preparation and spectroscopic characterization of interstellar relevant imines. Vladimir and Viktor successfully generated and isolated iminoacetaldehyde in solid argon. Congratulations! Our results are published in Chem. Commun. as invited communication and part of the 2023 Emerging Investigators collection. |  |
| August 2023 Viktor Paczelt successfully completed his Master studies and submitted his Master thesis. He will continue with his PhD studies at RUB in our group. |  |
| June 2023 Dónal O'Donnell joined the group as an undergraduate researcher for an international internship. He will study solvation science questions in the next three months with us. The program is funded by RESOLV. |  |
| June 2023 Alexander Swienty joined the group for for an external master thesis and will work with us in the synthesis lab for the next six months. |  |
| May 2023 Aya S. A. Alhaddad joined the group for for an in-depth practical. She will work in the synthesis lab and learn quantum chemical calculations. |  |
| April 2023 Shubham Sawle joined the group for an international internship funded by RESOLV. He will learn more about solvation science in the next six months. |  |
| April 2023 Adam Hasso joined the group for an in-depth practical. He will synthesize a new precursor for our imine chemistry. |  |
| March 2023 Luciana Herbeck joined the group for an in-depth practical. She will learn more about organic synthesis and computational chemistry. |  |
| March 2023 In a collaborative project with the Kaiser and Mebel groups we found first evidence for the existence of oxirene! Our findings are now published in Science Advances! |  |
| February 2023 Thank you Angewandte for publishing André's introducing author profile! Learn more about André here! |  |
| January 2023 Our paper about glycine imine is now published in Angewandte! Check out our work about glycine imine as the reactive intermediate in amino acid synthesis here! More about other imino acids is coming soon. |  |
| September 2022 Our proposal for a PhD position got funded by RESOLV! We will investigate solvation effects in the future. | |
| September 2022 Vladimir D. Drabkin joined the group for his PhD studies. He will investigate the cryosolvation of interstellar relevant molecules using matrix isolation spectroscopy and computational chemistry! |  |
| August 2022 Viktor Paczelt joined the group for an in-depth practical. He will have fun in the lab doing organic synthesis, matrix isolation spectroscopy and computational chemistry! | |
| July 2022 First paper of the group published in Chem. Commun.! Check out our work about the explosive decomposition of 1,2-diazidoethane, spectroscopic identification of 1,2-diiminoethane and imidazole synthesis here! |  |
| July 2022 Official start of the group. We gratefully acknowledge the Fonds der Chemischen Industrie for funding. | |