Jimmie Weaver

My entire professional career has involved catalysis.  This includes inner-sphere late transition metal catalysis where I worked on Pd-catalyzed decarboxylative cross-coupling reactions, organocatalysis where I designed and synthesized catalysts used to perform asymmetric C–C bond formations, and more recently in my independent career, photocatalysis.  In this latter effort, we have both developed new light absorbing metal-dyes and organodyes that facilitate both electron- and energy- transfers and new reactions.  In this process, I’ve learned the fundamentals of catalysis that connect this somewhat disparate field, which can facilitate cross-disciplinary conversations and aid in solving important problems.