Dr. Calum Ferguson

Calum Ferguson attained his PhD from the University of Leeds, UK, in 2018. After the completion of his doctoral studies, he joined the department of Physical Chemistry of Polymers at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, working with Prof. Dr. Kai Zhang and Prof. Dr. Katharina Landfester. In March of 2020, he became a research group leader with Prof. Dr. Katharina Landfester. His research interests include controlled radical polymer synthesis, production of new heterogeneous photocatalysts and the formation of bio-mimicking polymers and colloids.

Research Interests

We are interested in combining small molecule organic photocatalysts with classical monomers to form new hybrid polymeric materials. Here, the photocatalytic properties of small molecule photocatalysts can be imparted into designed polymer architectures by copolymerisation. Due to the relatively inexpensive nature of commercially available monomers, these photocatalytic polymers are more affordable than current alternatives. Moreover, the efficiency of the photocatalytic materials may be enhanced compared to other photocatalytic systems, as the active potions can easily be accessed by reagents and light. These hybrid materials can be used for a diverse range of projects, including synthetic biology, heterogeneous photocatalysis and therapeutic prodrug formation.


Selected Publications

R. Li, T. Kuckhoff, J. Heuer, K. Landfester, C. T. J. Ferguson
pH-Triggered Recovery of Organic Polymer Photocatalytic Particles for the Production of High Value Compounds and Enhanced Recyclability
Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2023, 62, e202217652
J. Heuer, T. Kuckhoff, R. Li, K. Landfester, C. T. J. Ferguson
Tunable Photocatalytic Selectivity by Altering the Active Center Microenvironment of an Organic Polymer Photocatalyst
ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 2023, 15, 2891–2900
S. Kim, K. Landfester, C. T. J. Ferguson
Hairy Conjugated Microporous Polymer Nanoparticles Facilitate Heterogeneous Photoredox Catalysis with Solvent-Specific Dispersibility
ACS Nano, 2022, 16, 17041-17048
R. Li, K. Landfester, C. T. J. Ferguson
Temperature- and pH-Responsive Polymeric Photocatalysts for Enhanced Control and Recovery
Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 2022, 61, e202211132
W. Wei, F. Mazzotta, K. Landfester, C. T. J. Ferguson, K. A. I. Zhang
Aerobic Photobiocatalysis Enabled by Combining Core–Shell Nanophotoreactors and Native Enzymes
J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2022, 144, 7320–7326
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