Promotor: Prof.dr. J.M. van Ruitenbeek, Prof.dr. R.M. Tromp

Former PhD, Bachelor and Master students of the Van Exter Lab

Chemical reactions go hand-in-hand with an energy exchange with the environment in which they take place. Surfaces offer a variety of energy dissipation channels, constituted by the nuclear and electronic degrees of freedom of the atoms at the interface. Aiming at an improved future harvesting of energy,…

An attractive feature of the MSc Chemistry programme at Leiden University is the great flexibility of the study programme, allowing students to put together a tailor-made programme following their personal interests. Within the limits set by the programme, students can make their own choices and adjust…

It is one of the energy carriers of the future: hydrogen. But how can hydrogen be produced in a sustainable way? With over 50 million euros in funding from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research(NWO) and industry, a research project involving 58 partners from both the Netherlands and abroad…

In a full lecture hall C1 the Faculty of Science started off the new academic year on Tuesday 5 September. The theme of the meeting was, just as it had been at the university's opening the day before, sustainability.

In this Ph.D. thesis we study the interaction of low energy electrons with thin materials, namely layered materials (graphene, hexagonal boron nitride, molybdenum disulfide) and organic films. At these low energies the quantum mechanical wavelength of the electron wave function is in the order of a…

Promotor: J.G.E.M.Fraaije, Co-promotor: A. Kros

Promotor: M.A.G.J. Orrit

The van Exter group has an extensive history of prior research in classical and quantum optics. As former part of the group of Han Woerdman, we have studied topics as diverse as:

Vibrating carbon monoxide molecules adsorbed at the surface of a salt crystal stop moving after a few milliseconds. Scientists now discovered this is dominantly due to the emission of electromagnetic waves. The role of the chemical bond at the surface thereby appears to be less important than previously…

How can we understand the material instability of photographic (mixed media) artworks (1960s - present) from an integrated approach of Art History, Conservation Science and Chemistry in order to preserve these works for the future?

In the last decade, the redox interconversion between metal thiolate and disulfide compounds has been extensively investigated for copper, but not for other transition metal ions.

The goal of the research presented in this thesis was to explore the chemical space of ruthenium(II) photocages, investigate their ability to host potent chemotherapy drugs, and to red shift the activation wavelength of the most promising PACT candidates to conduct biological studies.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading global cause of mortality. Endothelial dysfunction, an early reversible stage of CVD development, is marked by decreased nitric oxide production linked to Ca2+ influx in endothelial cells.

Climate change is one of the largest challenges faced by humanity. To combat this research into alternatives to fossil fuels is ongoing. Dihydrogen is considered a good alternative fuel, since its burning only forms water.

As leading cause of death worldwide, cancer is responsible for nearly 10 million deaths in 2020 according to World Health Organization (WHO). Cisplatin and its derivatives are commonly used chemotherapy agents for current cancer treatment in the clinics.

Metal complexes and 2D materials like graphene were combined to produce structures that can function as sensors.

Human civilization consumes a huge amount of fossil fuels, which has resulted in an atmospheric CO2 level which has not been higher in over 800 millennia.

The main goal of the research described in this thesis was the development of new photoactivated chemotherapy (PACT) ruthenium(II) complexes bearing a non-toxic photolabile ligand.

The growing demand of energy indicates that global energy resources in the form of fossil fuels will not be sufficient in the future. In order to solve potential future energy problems development of a sustainable hydrogen economy is highly desirable.

The redox-conversion reaction of metal-disulfide and metal-thiolate complexes are important, as they may shed light on electron-transfer reactions that often occur in Nature.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is one of the most pressing challenges that humanity faces in the coming decades.

Discover the other talented students who were nominated for this year’s award.

This thesis explores how electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy can be used to investigate key biochemical processes.

Here you will find an overview of the Spaces for Active Teaching and Learning already implemented at Leiden University and LUMC. These rooms vary in size, location, material affordances, and technological affordances, and thus vary in the forms of pedagogy they best support. You can use this site as…

Assessing the effects of landscape and land-use changes on the visibility of archaeological landscapes in Central-Southern Italy.

The Dick Stufkens Prize 2025 for best PhD thesis of the Holland Research School of Molecular Chemistry (HRSMC) has been awarded to Begüm Demirkurt for her thesis “Mechanical Contact Imaging using Fluorescence Techniques”. Demirkurt, who obtained her doctorate from the University of Amsterdam last March,…

Astronomer Donggang Wang, physicist Anne Meeussen and chemists Nick Gerrits and Elliot Mock: all four are receiving a Rubicon grant from the Dutch Research Council (NWO). This grant for young talent will enable them to spend two years doing research at a foreign university.

Our cantilevers have a low intrinsic damping rate: this enables us to measure with low noise, since damping is proportionate to noise. However, when the magnet is close to the surface of a sample we want to study, we measure a much higher effective damping rate. This is caused by magnetic interaction…

Promotor: S.J. Edixhoven, Co-promotor: R.S. de Jong

Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) are used as a current carrying substrate in investigation of current-induced forces in a low-temperature STM (chapter 2).

Protein–protein complexes are formed via transient states called encounter complexes that greatly influence the formation of the stereospecific complex.

To study how planetary systems come into existence we study much younger systems still in formation.

This PhD-thesis presents a study on micron-sized particles, so-called colloids. By controlling the chemical and physical properties of these particles, such as the interparticle interaction and the particles’ shape, colloids can act as building blocks that self-assembly into larger structures.

One of the key discoveries in exoplanet research over the past decade is the abundance of small planets in our Milky Way. Despite their high numbers, our understanding of their atmospheres remains limited, and it is unknown if they possess atmospheres at all.

This thesis presents the results of a study on the interfaces of insulating oxides with and without the insertion of a magnetic layer.

SMR can be used to measure the mass of adsorbed protein to nanoparticles with a high precision in the presence of free protein.

Promotor: A. Kros

A 24 person classroom on the ground floor of PJ Vethgebouw. Rolling, flexible furniture and 5+ writable surfaces supports small groupwork. Furniture is interlocking, supporting multiple arrangments. Features a smartboard TV monitor. Bookable through ZRS.

Leiden astronomers and ecologists are developing an instrument that lets people measure the quality of surface water with a smartphone.This international citizen science project, MONOCLE, is a collaboration between scientists and local people in Tanzania, Brazil and four European countries.

Proceedings of the XVII UISPP World Congress (1–7 September, Burgos, Spain). Volume 7/Sessions A4b and A12

Doctoral Thesis

Promotor: Prof.dr. T.J. Aartsma, Co-promotor: R.N. Frese

Promotor: E. Bouwman, Co-promotor: S. Bonnet

On the second floor of the Lipsius building is room 2.17, an active classroom designed with a capacity of 24 for active, group-based classwork. From 2019, the room will be part of the ZRS system and can be booked by the Humanities faculty and Humanities Service Desk.

A biographical approach to material cultural interactions between Caribbean communities and Europeans across the historical divide (AD 1000-1800)

A large, 64+ person space with multiple working zones in the Schouwburgstraat building, Den Haag. Tables fold and wheel, and chairs are also on wheels. There are multiple movable whiteboards which allow group working in various sizes. Windows and tables are additional writing surfaces. There is also…

A 90+ seat room in the LUMC Main Building. Rolling, flexible, tables on a carpetted floor allows for the quiet re-arrangement of the room to support teaching in groups of many size. Nearly 3 full walls are covered in magnetized, writable surfaces, and there are hinged TVs on the walls which can be beamed…