Group

PI: Katherine A. Mirica, Ph.D.
Katherine.A.Mirica@dartmouth.edu

Education
Ph.D. in Chemistry, Harvard University (2011)
B.S. in Chemistry, Boston College (2004)

Professional Appointments
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry, Dartmouth College (2015-present)
Postdoctoral Fellow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2011-2015)

Selected Honors, Awards, and Fellowships
NIH Maximizing Investigators' Research Award, 2020
Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, 2020
NSF CAREER Award, 2020
Cottrell Scholar Award, 2019
Sloan Research Fellowship, 2018
3M Non-Tenured Faculty Award, 2018
American Chemical Society PMSE Young Investigator Award, 2018
Thieme Chemistry Journals Award, 2018
Army Research Office Young Investigator Program Award, 2017
Walter and Constance Burke Research Initiation Award, Dartmouth College, 2015
Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award, MIT, 2012-2015
School of Science Spot Appreciation Award, MIT, 2014
Eli Lilly Predoctoral Fellowship, Harvard University, 2005-2006
Certificate of Distinction in Teaching, Harvard University, 2004-2005
Matthew Copithorne Scholarship, Boston College, 2004
Scholar of the College Award, Boston College, 2004

Katherine was born and raised in Eastern Ukraine, and moved with her family to the state of Rhode Island during her freshman year in high school. She attended Boston College, where she developed a passion for Materials Chemistry, working in the laboratory of Lawrence T. Scott. She graduated with high honors in 2004, and later that year moved across the river to pursue graduate studies at Harvard University. In 2011, Katherine earned her Ph.D. in Chemistry from Harvard University under the guidance of George M. Whitesides. Her doctoral dissertation focused on the development and characterization of a simple and portable method that used magnetic levitation for density-based chemical analysis. She also contributed to several other research efforts in the areas of paper-based diagnostics and protein biophysics. Katherine then joined the laboratory of Timothy M. Swager at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an NIH postdoctoral fellow to pursue the development of portable electronic carbon-based chemical sensors for the detection of hazardous gases and vapors. At MIT, she developed a solvent-free approach, operationally analogous to drawing with pencil on paper, for the fabrication of sensitive and selective sensors from carbon nanomaterials. Katherine began her independent scientific career as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at Dartmouth College in July 2015. Her research interests span the topics of self-assembly, design and synthesis of multifunctional framework materials, electroanalysis, energy, catalysis, and adhesion science.

Current Group Members

Zheng Meng, Ph.D.
Postoctoral Scholar (2016-present)

Zheng earned his Ph.D. degree in 2016 in Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Science under the supervision of Prof. Chuan-feng Chen. He enjoys the new life at Dartmouth where he can work together with a group of young talents. He likes basketball, ping-pong and tennis, and anything that arouses curiosity.

Aylin Aykanat
Graduate Student (G6)

Aylin is originally from Long Island, NY. She has completed her Masters in Science in Organic Chemistry at Bogazici University in Istanbul, Turkey and obtained her B.S. in Chemistry and Biology from SUNY New Paltz. Her hobbies include running through the woods and drinking lots of turkish tea.

Robert M. Stolz
Graduate Student (G6)

Robert is a proud native of Cleveland, Ohio. His passion for chemistry and material science was inspired by undergraduate work in the laboratory of Professor Brian Northrop at Wesleyan University. After graduating with a B.A. in 2012 and an M.A. in 2013, Robert worked as a polymer chemist for Dow Chemical Company’s Advanced Materials Division in Philadelphia. He joined the Mirica laboratory in the Spring of 2016 to pursue his doctorate in Chemistry. Robert enjoys exploring the great outdoors and playing hockey.

Nicholas Blelloch
Graduate Student (G5)

Nicholas comes from the town of Easton, Massachusetts. He completed his B.A. in Chemistry at Middlebury College in Vermont. At Middlebury, Nicholas has worked with Dr. Jeffrey Byers on the rational design and synthesis of organometallic molecular wires, and was a member of the Track & Field Team.

Aileen Eagleton
Graduate Student (G3)

Aileen Eagleton was born in Brooklyn, NY and raised in Poughkeepsie, NY. She received her Bachelor of Science in Chemistry with Chemical Biology emphasis from SUNY Albany. She is happy to be a part of the Dartmouth Community; she looks forward to skiing and the hiking opportunities around and near campus.

Emma Ambrogi
Graduate Student (G2)

Emma grew up in Manchester, NH and completed her undergraduate degree at Wellesley College in Wellesley, MA. After graduating, she worked as a research chemist at the US Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) in Hanover, NH. At CRREL, she was a member of the Advanced Materials Research Team and worked on a variety of projects including design of photocatalytic materials and bioinspired anti-icing materials. She joined the Mirica group in Fall 2019, and currently studies electrochemical detection of nitric oxide with framework materials. In her spare time, she enjoys skiing and singing with the Handel Society of Dartmouth College.

Georganna Benedetto
Graduate Student (G2)

Georganna is from Ridgefield, CT and attended Colby College in Maine where she double majored in Chemistry and Spanish. At Colby she performed green nano catalysis research in the Katz lab, swam freestyle on the Swim and Dive team, and hiked. Now at Dartmouth she is interested in sensing and catalysis and continuing hiking!

Priyanshu Chandra
Graduate Student (G2)

Priyanshu is from India, where he completed his BS-MS dual degree course from Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Pune with chemistry as his Major. He got enthused about MOFs and COFs after working in the group of Dr. S.K Ghosh (IISER Pune) and Prof. Christian Serre (ENS Paris). He is a fan of F.R.I.E.N.D.S, loves to write poems, cooking and taking a walk along the brook.

Evan Cline
Graduate Student (G1)

Evan hails from the town of Freeland, Michigan. He completed his B.A. in Chemistry at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. While at Lawrence, Evan worked both with Dr. Graham Sazama on the synthesis of stable, organic luminescent radicals and with Dr. Allison Fleshman on applying the Compensated Arrhenius Formalism (CAF) to ionic conductivity within room temperature ionic liquids. Outside of the lab, Evan was a member of the Lawrence University hockey team. His hobbies include hockey, basketball, and reading.

Lori-Ann Williams
Graduate Student (G1)

Lori-Ann Williams is from Clarendon, Jamaica. She completed her B.A. in Chemistry at Kalamazoo College in Michigan. While at K College, she worked with Professor Thomas Smith on the electrochemical properties of transition metal ligands. After graduating, Lori-Ann worked as a Team Coordinator and Chemist at Jamalco in Jamaica. Her hobbies include reading, singing, and listening to music.

Hana Yarbrough
Graduate Student (G1)

Originally from Baltimore, Maryland, Hana received a B.S. in Chemistry at St. Mary's College of Maryland. She worked with Dr. Daniel Chase to synthesize and develop functionalization methods for fluorescent aza-BODIPY dyes. In her spare time, Hana likes to meet dogs, try new outdoor activities, and get excited about temporary adhesives.

Anna Brinks '21
Undergraduate Researcher (2017-present)
WISP Intern, Sophomore Scholar, Presidential Scholar

Anna Brinks grew up in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She is a sophomore undergraduate at Dartmouth College and is planning on pursuing a chemistry major with a Spanish minor. She enjoys hiking, skiing, and exploring the outdoors.

Claudia Durbin '21
Undergraduate Researcher (2017-present)
WISP Intern, Sophomore Scholar, Presidential Scholar

Claudia grew up in Boston, Massachusetts, where she attended Newton Country Day School for eight years. She is interested in studying Chemistry and is on the pre-medical track. She enjoys training with the Triathlon team at Dartmouth and spending time with her family.

Colin Morrell '21
Undergraduate Researcher (2018-present)
Sophomore Scholar, Presidential Scholar

Colin grew up in Trabuco Canyon, California. He is interested in studying biophysical chemistry. He is a California native plant enthusiast, and he enjoys ornithology and photographing national parks.

Brittany Cleary '21
Undergraduate Researcher (2020-present)
Zabriskie Scholar

Brittany is from Greenwich, CT. She is majoring in Chemistry with a minor in Hispanic Studies. When not in lab, Brittany enjoys going for runs, reading, and spending time with friends.

Anna Kolln '22
Undergraduate Researcher (2019-present)
FrRIOC Scholar, Presidential Scholar

Anna Kolln is from Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is majoring in chemistry and German studies and has been conducting research with the Mirica group since her Freshman spring. In her free time, she enjoys playing the violin in the Dartmouth Symphony Orchestra, dancing, and traveling.

Sophia Miller ‘22
Undergraduate Researcher (2020-present)
Presidential Scholar

Sophia grew up in Grantham, NH. She is majoring in Chemistry with a minor in Middle Eastern studies. In her free time, she enjoys running, cooking, and spending time with friends and family.

Audrey Herrald '23
Undergraduate Researcher (2020-present)
Sophomore Scholar

Audrey grew up in Thornton, Colorado. She plans to major in neuroscience and minor in chemistry. On campus, she enjoys writing and editing for the undergraduate science journal, co-leading the Student Mental Health Union, and training with the club running team.

Alumni and Former Group Members

Postdoctoral Scholars

Merry Smith, Ph.D.
Currently: Product Manager and Marketing Communications Manager at C2Sense, Inc. (Watertown, MA)
Postdoctoral Scholar at Dartmouth College (2015-2017)
Ph.D. in Chemistry from Wesleyan University, CT (with Prof. Brian Northrop)
B.S. in Chemistry from Trinity College, CT

Xiaoping Zhang, Ph.D.
Currently: Assistant Professor at Zhejiang Normal University (Jinhua, China)
Postdoctoral Scholar at Dartmouth College (2015-2017)
Ph.D. in Chemistry from University of Wyoming (with Prof. Edward Clennan)
B.S. in Chemistry from Jilin University, China

Lukasz Mendecki, Ph.D.
Currently: Chief Technology Officer, Allergy Amulet, Inc. (Lowell, MA)
Postdoctoral Scholar at Dartmouth College (2017-2018)
Ph.D. in Chemistry from Keele University (with Dr. Aleksandar Radu)
M.Sc. in Forensic Science from King's College London

Graduate Students

Michael Ko, Ph.D.
Currently: Senior Scientist at LabSphere, Inc. (North Sutton, NH)
Ph.D. in Chemistry from Dartmouth College, 2020
PhD Thesis: "Electrically-Transduced Chemical Sensors Based on 2D Metal–Organic Frameworks"
B.S. in Biochemistry from California State University, Fullerton

Haydn Mitchell, M.S.
Currently: Production Engineer, Castle Freke Distillery (Clonakilty, Ireland)
Research Scientist and M.S. Student (2015-2018)
M.S. Thesis: "Molecular Solids as Sublimable Adhesives"

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Researchers

Louisa Greenburg '20
Currently: Graduate Student in Materials Science at Stanford University
Undergraduate Researcher (2016-2020)
Presidential Scholarship, Sophomore Science Scholar, WISP Intern
Honors Thesis: "The Design, Synthesis, and Application of Electrically Conductive Metal–Organic Frameworks in Lithium-ion Batteries"

Carly Tymm '20
Currently: Researcher at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Undergraduate Researcher (2016-2020)
Presidential Scholar, Barbara E. Crute Memorial Intern, WISP Intern
Honors Thesis: "Molecular and Crystal Engineering of Molecular Solids as Sublimable Adhesives: How do bulk and interfacial interactions influence mechanical properties?"