Past Postdoctoral Fellows


Manoj Manna

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2019-2020

Dr. Manna’s project involved finding structures that are capable of excitation-dependent dual-emission. 


Vasanth Ramachandran

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2012-2013

Vasanth is an EPR specialist. With Sreenath they developed a mechanistic model of the Cu/O2-promoted dehydrogenation reaction of chelating amines. Vasanth also studied the coordination chemistry of multinuclear first-row transition metal complexes of 1,2,3-triazolyl-containing ligands. Vasanth is now an Associate Professor at Pensacola State College.


Zhao Yuan

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2011-2015

Zhao developed bisazide linkers for sequential chemoselective conjugation chemistry. He completed the studies of bipyridyl-containing zinc indicators. He also contributed to the photophysical studies of 2-(2′-hydroxyphenyl)benzoxazole and its derivatives. Currently, Zhao is a Senior Process Engineer at Applied Materials in Santa Clara, California.


Kesavapillai Sreenath

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2010-2013

Sreenath made major contributions to a range of projects, including fluorescent sensors with improved photostability and color profile that was benefited from an intramolecular Forster resonance energy transfer (FRET) process, new designs of fluorescent heteroditopic ligands, copper/O2 catalytic oxidation chemistry, coordination chemistry of 1,2,3-triazoles, and photophysics of 2-(2′-hydroxyphenyl)benzoxazole. Sreenath became a professor at NSS College in Pandalam in Kerala after completing his postdoctoral appointment. 


Pampa Guha

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2010-2011

Pampa studied the coordination chemistry of azido- and 1,2,3-triazolyl-containing ligands. Currently, Pampa is a professor at City College in Kolkata, India. 


Gui-Chao Kuang

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2009-2011

Gui-Chao expanded the scope of chelating azide-promoted copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC). He also provided the mechanistic details of this subclass of CuAAC. Gui-Chao completed the studies on fluorescent heteroditopic zinc indicators based on the phenylvinylenebipy fluorophore. Currently, Gui-Chao is a professor at Central South University in Changsha, China. 


Lu Zhang

Postdoctoral Fellow, 2006-2009

Lu was the initial and the major contributor to the development of the heteroditopic fluorescent ligand platform for creating ditopic zinc probes that respond to two different zinc concentration regimes. He also dabbled in the electrochemistry of catechol derivatives right before he left our group to work at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). Currently, Lu is a Scientist at ANL.