1. Curved and Distorted Nanographenes

We develop bottom-up synthetic strategies to access non-planar nanographenes with negative and positive curvature, incorporating non-hexagonal rings (heptagons and octagons) to control molecular topology and electronic structure.

• Synthesis of heptagon- and octagon-embedded nanographenes with tailored curvature

• Integration of nanographenes into macrocyclic and cycloparaphenylene architectures

• Correlation between molecular curvature and charge transport properties

2. Chiral Nanographenes and Chiroptical Properties

This line focuses on the design of chiral π-conjugated nanographenes exhibiting strong circular dichroism and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL), linking molecular chirality to optical activity.

• Development of first CPL-active curved nanographenes
• Enhancement of chiroptical responses through structural distortion and heteroatom doping

3. Photophysics and Nonlinear Optical Responses

We investigate the photophysical and nonlinear optical properties of distorted nanographenes, targeting multifunctional optical behavior for advanced photonic applications.

Main achievements:

• Demonstration of two-photon absorption–based upconversion combined with CPL

• Ultrafast photophysical studies revealing relaxation dynamics in contorted nanographenes

• Development of nanographene-based photonic microlabels

4. On-Surface Synthesis and Functional Hybrid Materials

This research line bridges molecular nanographene chemistry with surface science and functional materials, enabling the construction of hybrid and low-dimensional systems.

Main achievements:

• On-surface synthesis of non-benzenoid polymers and nanoribbons
• Nanographene-based hybrid catalytic and supramolecular materials
• Formation of extended nanosheets from amphiphilic nanographene units

5. Organometallic, Radical, and Mechanistic Chemistry (PhD studies) and Molecular Machines (Posdoctoral stage)

Early work established a strong foundation in organometallic catalysis, radical reactions, and molecular motion, providing key conceptual and synthetic tools.

Main achievements:

• Titanocene(III)-mediated radical reactions in aqueous media

• Development of multimetallic and mechanistic synthetic methodologies

• Studies on molecular walkers and directed motion