Under the supervision of Pfr. Félix Freire and Pfr. Emilio Quiñoá at CiQUS, Zulema Fernández has recently defended her thesis entitled "Covalent and Supramolecular Helical Polymers: The Down of Matryoshka Materials".
What is your research about?
My doctoral thesis is focused on the development of new helical polymers with potential application in fields such as nanotechnology, catalysis or biochemistry, among others. Covalent polymers are obtained by the polymerization of the monomer repeating units and are characterized by its high stability.
On the other hand, in the case of the supramolecular polymers its structure is only stabilized by non-covalent interactions between monomers, since no polyene backbone is formed. This lack of strong interactions results in a dynamic scaffold highly dependent on the sample conditions and, therefore, the slightest modification will have a dramatic impact on the final aggregate.
In my doctoral thesis we have designed and analysed the helical structure and dynamic behaviour of different supramolecular and covalent polymers and the information gathered from these studies allowed us to describe a novel type of chiral material, the matryoshka polymers. The drawbacks observed for the aforementioned polymers are overcome, enabling to obtain helical structures that could not be produced in other experimental conditions.
What would you highlight from your experience at CiQUS these years?
The good facilities and wide instrumentation of the CiQUS allowed the successful completion of my doctoral studies. Moreover, the seminars and conferences organized by the centre allows not only to know the research developed at CiQUS, but also to meet important scientists and even Nobel Prize laureates.
Developing my PhD studies in the group of Prof. E. Quiñoá and Prof. F. Freire group has been an enriching experience at the scientific level and also at the personal one, being able to meet people from different countries and cultures.