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News

15.09.2023

Congratulations to Vera who won 1st prize in the poster competition with her poster “Synthesis of acridane[4]arenes with different substituents” at the REGIO Symposium 2023! At this event, researchers from the nearby universities of Basel, Strasbourg, Mulhouse, and Freiburg are brought together every year for a three-day organic and bio-organic chemistry symposium with lectures, oral communications, and poster sessions.

13.07.2023 Our annual group trip took place at Alaïa Bay, Sion, in the first surf pool in continental Europe. After an early train to the south from Basel, a quick walk around Sion to warm up our legs, and some expert training, we enjoyed a session of surfing while surrounded by an amazing mountain view. Even for a group of mostly complete beginners, the progress was very fun, satisfying, and worth the tired arms the next day.

05.07.2023 Congratulations to Mattias who successfully defended his PhD thesis!

24.02.2023 Congratulations to Melina who successfully defended her PhD thesis!

08.02.2023 Congratulations to Tian-Ren on his recent publication. He reports highly β-selective furanosylation reactions enabled by the resorcin[4]arene capsule. In contrast to the pyranosylation reaction inside the same catalyst, the furanosylation mechanism is shifted towards an SN1 reaction on the mechanistic continuum between the prototypical SN1 and SN2 substitution types.

07.02.2023 Congratulations to Ivana and Dario on their recent publication. They used the resorcin[4]arene capsule to access unprecendented terpenoid skeletons that cannot be obtained by terpene cyclase enzymes, including products with large, unnatural substituents.  

14.12.2022 We resumed our annual Christmas beer pong event this year. After a close tournament, Tian-Ren and Vera emerged victorious, then faced off against each other for a tense final match. Tian-Ren was crowned champion and received the coveted bottle of champagne.

13.12.2022 Congratulations to Melina on her recent publication. She was able to synthesise four new supramolecular tweezer catalysts based on her previously published Fe(pdp)Twe. New aliphatic ammonium substrates were explored, and all catalysts showed preferential oxidation of the deactivated C3 and C4 positions close to the positive charge.

08.12.2022 Our unusually large, conformationally restricted acridane[4]arene was shortlisted for ACS C&EN’s molecules of the year! Voting is open until the 13th of December, 6AM CET.

10.08.2022 Congratulations to Jonathan who successfully defended his PhD thesis!

04.08.2022 Congratulations to Jonathan on his recent publication. He synthesized novel, unprecedentedly large deep-cavitands that are capable of mM to sub-μM binding affinity for C60 and C70, respectively. Guests are bound within the deep cavity and the megalo-cavitands are even capable of selective binding of C70 in the presence of C60.

https://twitter.com/TiefenbacherLab/status/1555182484974964737

25.07.2022 Our annual group trip was held in Europapark theme park this year, an exciting experience for first-timers and park veterans alike. After a train trip from Basel, we made straight for the Swiss-themed Matterhorn Blitz, followed by the intimidating Silver Star and the dark indoors EuroSat rollercoaster. We stopped for lunch together before tackling the Poseidon and Pegasus rides, the rattling Wodan timber coaster, and the low-stakes Whale Adventures. We took a break for some much-appreciated cold drinks, since we were in the middle of a heatwave, and a charming Austrian-themed boat ride. Then we headed home after an enjoyable day of conquering fears.

25.03.2022 Congratulations to Daria on her recent publication. She synthesized the first optically active hexameric resorcin[4]arene capsules, which display catalytic activity in the tail-to-head terpene cyclization of nerol. Up to 70% e.e is achieved, without the use of a chiral co-catalyst.

04.03.2022 Congratulations to Fabian who successfully defended his PhD thesis!

 

28.02.2022 Congratulations to Suren who successfully defended his PhD thesis today!

15.02.2022 Congratulations to Daria who successfully defended her PhD thesis today!

06.01.2022 Congratulations to Fabian and Lorenzo on their recent publication. They were able to optimize our previously published acid-catalyzed carbonyl olefin metathesis inside the resorcinarene capsule to access products previously only accessible by the use of (super)stoichiometric additives.

27.10.2021 Congratulations to Jonathan on his recent publication. He synthesized a new class of macrocycles called Xanthene[n]arenes: Exceptionally large, bowl-shaped macrocycles suitable for the construction of cavitands, hydrogen-bonded capsules and hydrocarbon belts.

04.10.2021 The annual group trip recently took place, in the form of a canoe trip along the Altrhein, which forms the border between Germany and France. After a short train ride from Basel and a stroll through the town of Istein, we were instructed on the different roles in the canoe (the “motor” and the “navigator”), equipped with life vests, and launched into the river. We quickly got used to the canoes, navigating a series of small rapids with success before making our way to shore for a short break. When we resumed paddling, we tried some more daring tricks: standing up in the boats, holding hands to keep all five boats together, and then climbing from one side of the connected boats to the other as fast as possible. After 20km of strenuous rowing, we hauled the boats back onto land and enjoyed a well-earned lunch in Neuenburg am Rhein.

10.09.2021 Daria and Melina had the pleasure of participating and presenting at the 1st Women in Supramolecular Chemistry (WISC) workshop in Cagliari this week. It was a great opportunity to share our work with the community and gain valuable input from our peers.

22.08.2021 Congratulations to Suren on his recent publication. He synthesized several new thioderivatives of Resorcin[4]arene and Pyrogallol[4]arene and studied their properties with regard to self-assembly, disulfide chemistry, and Brønsted acid catalysis.

02.08.2021 Ivan starts working on his PhD thesis. Welcome to the group!

22.07.2021 Congratulations to Daria on her recent publication. She was able to optimize our previously published iminium-catalysed 1,4-reductions inside the resorcinarene capsule to achieve >90% ee through the addition of alcohol additives.

07.06.2021 Congratulations to Tian-Ren on his recent publication. In a collaboration with the Matile group at the University of Geneva, he found that the resorcin[4]arene capsule is an effective catalyst for epoxide-opening ether cyclizations. A comparison with alternative catalysts revealed a unique, product selectivity.

03.05.2021 Leonidas returns from the US to complete the second half of his Marie Skłodowska-Curie Global Fellowship and Louis starts working on his master thesis. Welcome (back) to the group!

01.05.2021 Severin leaves the Group to pursue a career in industry. Good luck!

16.04.2021 Congratulations to Severin who successfully defended his PhD thesis today!

 

13.04.2021 Congratulations to Suren, Michael and Jesper on their recent publication. They designed and synthesized two resorcin[4]arene scaffolds with four phosphate binding groups. These ligands were used in the De Roo group to show their superior binding affinity for nanocrystal surfaces. A great collaboration with our in house neighbors.

08.04.2021 Congratulations to Michael and Melina on their recent publication. They have developed a modular platform for glycoluril-derived molecular tweezers and identified a derivative with unprecedented binding selectivity for natural polyamines. A great conclusion to Michael’s PhD thesis.

30.12.2020 Congratulations to Severin on his recent publication. He synthesized an unusually large hydrogen bonded molecular cage, that self-assembles in chlorinated, organic solvents and shows guest-uptake for fullerenes.

16.11.2020 Pascal joins our group for his Master’s thesis. Welcome to the group!

24.09.2020 Can leaves the group to pursue his academic career as professor in China. Congratulations and all the best!

11.09.2020 Michael leaves the group to pursue his postdoc in the group of David MacMillan at Princeton University. Good luck!

01.09.2020 Iris starts working on her PhD thesis. Welcome to the group!

21.08.2020 Congratulations to Ivana and Leonidas on their recent publication. They try to answer the question, whether molecular capsules are ready to address the current challenges in synthetic organic chemistry.

04.08.2020  Today, the Tiefenbacher Group went on their annual group trip. This time we travelled to Reigoldswil to explore the beautiful Wasserfallen area. After reaching Reigoldswil by bus, we started our ascend through the misty valley carved out by the “Hintere Frenke” creek on the „Jäger Wegli“. Having climbed 400 meters in altitude over 1.5h we reached our first waypoint at the „Hintere Wasserfallen“ mountain inn, where we took some refreshments to gain our strength for the last leg of the hike. Climbing another 250 meters in height through fields and forest, we arrived at the „Hinteri Egg“, the highest mountain of the Canton of Basel-Landschaft standing 1.169 meters tall. From their we descended to our starting point in the village of Reigoldswil, partly on foot and partly on „Trottis“ (scooters). All in all a great work-out for the entire group! 

05.07.2020 Congratulations to Suren on his publication. He synthesized and characterized Catechol[4]arene: the missing chiral member of the calix[4]arene family. Many thanks to the Szumna Group for our first collaboration.

03.07.2020 Congratulations to Michael who successfully defended his PhD thesis today!

 

26.05.2020 Congratulations to Melina and Michael on their recent publication. They developed a supramolecular tweezer catalyst capable of overriding the intrinsic reactivity in aliphatic C-H oxidation. A great conclusion to the work of Melina’s Master thesis.

18.03.2020 Congratulations to Leonidas, Ivana, Dario and Fabian on their recent publication. Their work utilizes a supramolecular capsule to shorten a previously reported 13 step total synthesis to just 4 steps! 

18.02.2020 Check out our most recent contributions to the field of Supramolecular Chemistry by Severin and Fabian B.!

06.01.2020 Giacomo starts working on his PhD thesis. Welcome to the group!

17.12.2019 In a fierce contest, Fabian Huck emerged as the new Tiefenbacher Group Beer Pong champion, reclaiming the title for the PhDs!

01.11.2019 Jesper successfully defends his PhD thesis!

01.10.2019 Ivana and Can join the group as PostDocs. Welcome (back) to the group!

02.08.2019 Dario starts working on his PhD thesis. Welcome to the group!

17.07.2019 The group goes on a trip to Bern (city tour) and down the Aare (boating) in sunny weather.

01.03.2019 Melina resumes work as a PhD student. Welcome to the group!

18.12.2018 We continued our annual christmas tradition of hosting a beer pong tournament. After many intense matches, Leonidas proved himself to be unbeatable.

01.10.2018 Mattias starts work on his PhD thesis. Welcome to the group!

14.08.2018 The group went on a trip to Interlaken. First refreshment and excitement in the icy waters of the Saxeten river followed by a relaxing afternoon tour of the St.Beatus caves.

 

02.08.2018 Tian-Ren started his project today. Welcome to the group!

02.07.2018 Jonathan joined our lab to work on his PhD thesis. Welcome to the group!

09.04.2018 Melina joins our group for her Master’s thesis. Welcome to the top group in 1096!

03.04.2018 Suren and Leonidas started their projects today. Welcome to the group!

26.03.2018 Thomas successfully defended his PhD thesis in Munich today. Congratulations!

06.12.2017 It’s time for beer pong again! Qi was hard to beat this year as well and successfully defended his title.

13.11.2017 Daria joins our lab as the newest member. Welcome to the group!

08.11.2017 Farewell dinner in honor of Lorenzo leaving for Japan to pursue a postdoc in the group of Prof. Yoshizawa.

13.10.2017 Johannes successfully defended his PhD thesis in Munich. We wish you the best of luck for your future career as
                   scientific illustrator!

02.10.2017 We welcome our newest member Fabian H. to the group.

01.09.2017 Teodora joined our lab as visiting student. Welcome to the group!

25.08.2017 Completed our move to new labs in Rosental/1096. 

02.05.2017 Fabian B. and Severin joined our lab as PhD students.

27.03.2017 Lorenzo successfully defended his PhD thesis in Munich. Congratulations!

23.01.2017 Joachim joined the lab to work on his Master’s thesis. Welcome to the group!

15.12.2016 Today we held our annual christmas beer pong tournament. The loser gets to clean the messiest
                   fume hood and the winner takes home a bottle of finest champagne. After many intense duels Qi
                   emerged victorious, closely followed by Konrad. Congratulations to the well-deserved winner!

13.12.2016 Thomas held a captivating presentation for the PCC, in which he introduced our research and the group to our new colleagues at the University of Basel.

01.12.2016 Christmas group retreat to Colmar. Luckily there was Glühwein to keep us warm as we explored the five markets in town. 

10.10.2016 Manuel starts working in lab 102 towards his Master’s Thesis. Welcome to the group!

04.10.2016 Qi moves to Basel from TUM and starts his work as a PostDoc. 

15.09.2016  Konrad receives the ERC-Starting Grant.

05.09.2016 Fabian B. begins working on his Master’s thesis. Welcome to the group!

01.09.2016 Jesper joins Michael in lab 101.

01.08.2016 Michael starts setting up lab 101. Welcome!

04.07.2016  Severin begins his work on his master thesis in Basel. Welcome!

04.07.2016  Thomas moves to Basel from TUM. Grüezi.

23.06.2016  Konrad presents at the NCCR MSE evaluation meeting.

08.06.2016  ERC Starting Grant interview in Brussels – lets wait for the results…

01.06.2016  Lorenzo starts setting up lab 102 in Basel. Grüezi!