Diapositive 1

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• Quebec City
• Department
• Infrastructure
• Research

ByFrédéric-Georges Fontaine
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Cultural City
Half a million citizens Summer festival Winter
carnival House of many cultural activities and
bars
Historical City
Built in 1608 UNESCO World Heritage
Close to nature
Several ski stations Close to several national
parks
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First known as the Séminaire de Québec, founded
in 1663
Officially an University in 1852
38 000 students
Several sport and cultural activities
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Faculty 18 Active 1 Incoming
Professionals 4 Secretaries
4 Technicians 6
Employees 14
Students 185
B. Sc. 90 M. Sc. 50 Ph. D. 35
Postdoc 10
LÉcole supérieure de chimie was founded in
1920.
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More than 5 millions in forefront
instrumentation
NMR spectroscopy X-ray diffraction IR
spectroscopy RAMAN spectroscopy UV-Vis
spectroscopy Fluorescence spectroscopy
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More than 5 millions in forefront
instrumentation
Atomic force microscopy (AFM) GC-MS HPLC Circular
Dichroïsm ICPMS Atomic Absorption
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Funding sources
3 Canada Research Chairs
Mario Leclerc Conducting polymers Freddy
Kleitz Nanoporous materials Jean-François
Paquin Organic Chemistry
Others
FQRNT
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Contracts
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Bourses
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NSERC
5 Successful CFI Grants for more than 5 millions
in equipment
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More than 3 millions in operating grants
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Centre de recherche en sciences et ingénierie
des macromolécules Centre de recherche sur la
fonction, la structure et l'ingénierie des
protéines Centre de recherche sur les propriétés
des interfaces et la catalyse Centre d'optique,
photonique et laser
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Bomem
Hydro Québec
Infectio Diagnostic
Biopharmacopae Design International Inc.
OmegaChem
Nexia Biotechnologies
Eisai Research Institute
Candu Owners Group Inc.
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Organic Chemistry
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Nanostructures inspired by natural biological
systems

Artificial peptidic molecules that mimics the ion
transport properties of natural channel proteins
Ultra-sensitive diagnostic tools Nanotherapeutics
Combination of organic solution and solid phase
synthesis and the characterization of complex
organic compounds by many different spectroscopic
techniques.
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Biocatalysis

Biocatalysis (enzymes) in asymmetric synthesis of
natural products and bioactive compounds.
Medicinal chemistry synthesis of aminoacyl-tRNA
synthetase inhibitors (antibiotics).
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Organofluorine Chemistry

Because the introduction of fluorine atoms into
bioactive molecules can have a dramatic impact on
biological activities, therefore novel routes to
fluorinated compounds are required.
For example, three of the top 10 selling drugs of
2003 in the United States possess at least one
fluorine atom.
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Novel routes to fluorinated compounds

• Metal-Catalyzed Reactions

• Lewis-Acid Catalyzed Electrophilic Fluorination

• Gain fundamental molecular insight into the
  biological mechanism of therapeutic relevant
  proteins

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Bismuth Chemistry

Group interests New methodologies in organic
chemistry New approaches towards the use of new
metals (Bi) Study of bismuth(III) catalysts
Why bismuth(III) Cheap Very low toxicity Lewis
acids tolerant to water
What are we looking for Efficient catalysts (low
loading) Compatible with the industry with a
minimum of waste (Green Chemistry) Preparation
of biologically active molecules of
pharmaceutical interest
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Bismuth chemistry

Study of ecological and recyclable BiX3 catalysts
for many important catalytic reactions Mannich
reaction Epoxide ring opening Claisen
rearrangement Fries rearrangement Allylation of
imines Preparation of important biological
molecules
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Inorganic Chemistry
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Ordered Nanoporous Materials by Templating

Hexagonal silica
Cubic silica
Electron Microscopy (TEM)
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Properties and Applications

High surface areas (up to 2000 m2/g) Various
channel structures (pores 2-30 nm)
Functionalization of surfaces
Morphology (particles, spheres, fibers, films, )
SUITABLE FOR Catalysis, Sorption, Separation,
Sensors, Optics, Electronics, Hosts for
bio-molecules, Drug delivery, etc...
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Host-guest sytems

Nanoporous silica
Polymer
Organics
Carbon
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Nano-Casting Strategy

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Bimetallic organometallic complexes

Design of bimetallic ligands bearing both donor
and acceptor groups
Their coordination on metal rich centers
New family of ancillary ligands s-acid
ligands Positioning of the Lewis acids close to
active site
Characterization of the new complexes in solution
(NMR) and at the solid state (FTIR, Xray)
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C-H activation

Enhancing the reaction rate and reactivity by the
presence of a Lewis acid
Fontaine and Zargarian, JACS, 2004,126, 8786
How does it affect C-H activation systems?
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Bridging Organometallic Chemistry to Surface
Science

The Missing Chapter Spessard and Meissler, Chap.
10 metal alkylidenes MCHR metal
alkylidynesM?CR Terminal alkylidenes (carbenes)
are even rare for di-nuclear metal complexes.
Cross-Metathesis Vibrational (RAIRS) Data
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Enantioselective Chemistry on Surfaces The Orito
Reaction

Catalyst Pt/Al2O3 Chiral Modifier
Solvent chiral modifier cinchona,
cinchonidine Substrate Methyl Pyruvate H2
?(R)-Methyl Lactate CH3COCOOCH3 an
?-ketoester the keto-carbonyl is hydrogenated
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Top 10 of the year 2004

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Physical Chemistry
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Biological and pharmaceutical applications of
solid-state NMR spectroscopy

Biomembrane
Model membrane
Cell
Relationship between the structure, dynamics and
function of the different components of membranes
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Research interests

Development of new antimicrobial
agents Interactions between membranes and new
antimicrobial peptides Study of a membrane
protein from Pseudomonas aeruginosa Study of an
endolysin from the phage fKZ Amyloid peptides
(Alzheimers disease) Lipid vectors and
chloroethylureas Nanodomain formation in
membranes Study of recombinant spider silk
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Study by vibrational spectroscopy of the
conformation and orientation of natural and
synthetic macromolecules

Protein structure protein conformation, 2D-IR
spectroscopy (H-D exchange, temperature), silk
proteins, Model biological membranes
lipid-protein interactions, molecular orientation
in multi- and monolayers on solid substrates
(ATR) and at the air-water interface (PM-IRRAS),
Polymer orientation dynamics of orientation
(PM-IRLD), thin films at the air-water interface,

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Polarized Raman spectra of a silk filament

Single dragline fiber of the spider Nephila
edulis (10 mm) 1 mW 632.8 nm
laser
Amide I
Ala
Z
X
C-C
Amide III
Tyr
CH2
COO-
Tyr
Tyr
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Effect of tensile deformation

Fiber stretcher simultaneous recording of
strain, stress and Raman spectrum
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Raman image of a silk fiber

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Molecular organisation in thin polymer films

Langmuir-Blodgett films for liquid crystal
alignment
Organisation of block co-polymers at the
air-water interface
Reduction of surface anchoring and switching
voltages with fluorinated Langmuir-Blodgett films.
Fabrication of nanostructured surfaces
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Molecular organisation in thin polymer films

These ordered nanostructures can be used to
organise nanoparticles.
Gold nanoparticles coated with polystyrene are
preferentially located in the polystyrene domains
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New liquid mirrors made from silver nanoparticles

Aqueous suspension of silver particles
Ligand in C2H4Cl2
Spontaneous aggregation at the liquid-liquid
interface
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New liquid mirrors made from silver nanoparticles

Magnetically deformable mirror on a ferrofluid
Rotating mirror on water
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Preparation of nanoparticules in reverse micelles
Triangles
Hexagons
Losanges
Nanoparticles of lanthanide salts have important
luminescent properties.
Triangles
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Crystallization morphology control

Monocrystals via chain folding Crystal thickness
control rigid bloc length
Functionalization of interface ? adhesion and
compression
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Transmission electron microscopy

Crystals with ab plane Molecular length Mn too
large for crystal thickness CHAIN FOLDING
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Thickness evaluation (AFM)

Flat Crystals, composed of many STRATA Thickness
increases with number of aromatic groups in rigid
block AFM values slightly above predicted values
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Conjugated polymers

• ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES Conductivities 1-1000
  S/cm
• OPTICAL PROPERTIES Absorption and emission in
  the UV-visible range
• STABILITY, MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
• APPLICATIONS Conductors
• Electroluminescent diodes
• Transistors
• Sensors

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DNA-Chromism

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Colorimetry

a- Poly à 55C b- Poly / X1 c- Poly /X1 /Y1 d-
Poly /X1 /Y2 e- Poly /X1 / Y3
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Analytical Chemistry
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Radioecology

Analysis of radioactive substances around
Gentilly 2 nuclear power plant
Analysis of air quality
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Advantages of laser ablation

Beam focalisation micro-analysis on the surface
of solid samples
Direct analysis of a solid sample easier
preparation of the sample and low risk of
contamination
Analysis of small quantities of matter (pg-ng)
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Analytical chemistry challenges

• Examples
• Impurities in integrated circuits
• Distribution of elements at trace concentration
  in growth rings (plants, molluscs)
• Crystalline inclusions

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Ejection by spallation and vaporization

Ablated surface
Particles harvesting on Nucleopore filter
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LEI signal (Pb) for a single impulsion

Injected mass 20 ng Pb mass 3 pg
Signal LEI (V)
60 fg
13 fg
4 fg
Impulsions dexcitation
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Theorical Chemistry
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Phenomenology

Intense field molecular dynamics and Laser Control
Tracking control Absolute phase effect (Dynamical
Dissociation Quenching effect)
Synchronisation of molecular wavepackets with
field-induced potential energy surfaces (PES)
Electronic structure and dynamics in intense
fields
Tunnel ionisation Electron Correlation in intense
field Electron Recollision Dynamics
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Methodological developments

Formalism Superconvergent perturbation theory
for time-dependent quantum systems Computational
Wave-packet propagation methodology ab-initio
electronic structure calculations
Developments TD-MCSCF (Time-Dependent
Multi-Configuration Self-Consistent Field) method.
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