Welcome to my chemistry page. I am glad that you want to learn about my interest in chemistry.
Enjoy. :)
How did my interest in chemistry develop and why did I decide to study it?
Well, when I was really young I wanted to become rich! In those times I was digging for hidden treasures, just have a look at the excavation pic on the "Pictures of Me - I" page. Unfortunately, in my area there are no treasures to find. All I investigated were caves and former villages which were abandoned during the Thirty Years War. Nevertheless, I developed a lasting interest in archaeology.
However, I discovered also some minerals and fossils. Even though they didn't have much monetary value I started searching for them and collecting them. Then, I must have been about 10 years old, my parents gave me a chemistry set as a present. It was made in the former Sovietunion, so it had quite a number of chemicals in it. I started doing the experiments described in the accompanying manual. Since I had such an interest my parents gave me another chemistry set which was made in the former DDR. At some point it occured to me that minerals are actually chemicals!! In many cases they are pure substances and they have an internal structure (crystallography). I had this 'enlightenment' when I was about in 7th grade. This was also the time when I started taking chemistry classes in school.
The science curriculum of the school system in the former DDR was pretty good: mathematics started in 1st grade and was taught through 12th grade, physics started in 6th grade and was taught through 12th grade, and chemistry started in 7th grade and was taught through 12th grade. In other words, I took 5 years of chemistry in school. I also took a year of astronomy in 9th grade. In case you are curious, in the former DDR we started learning Russian as our first foreign language in 5th grade. In 7th grade, we started a second foreign language, which was either English or French. I took English. In 11th grade, we could take an optional (not required as a part of the curriculum, just learning, no grades) year of Latin. Since I wanted to get good grades in my other classes, I, in retrospect unfortunately :( , didn't take the Latin class. Of course, all the social science classes in the former DDR were heavily influenced by politics, so they are not worth mentioning here.
In 10th grade I had to decide upon a career path. It had to be at such a young age, since 11th and 12th grade were only open to pupils that intended to attend university afterwards. I decided that I wanted to study chemistry since it is independent of the political system, and there is a chemical industry in every country. My aim was to study chemistry in the DDR and then try to go to a western country. Thanks to the "Wende," our peaceful revolution in 1989, I was living much earlier in a western country than I had ever hoped. With the reunification of Germany on October 3rd, 1990, I was living in a western country.
My Study of Chemistry
Part I - Towards the German Diplom-Chemiker Degree (Dipl.-Chem.) ("Master's of Science in Chemistry")
In September of 1990, I started the study of chemistry at the Friedrich-Schiller Universität in Jena. Note, that in Germany when you enter university after 12th grade, you start studying a specific field. This is different from the system in the US, where you take all sorts of classes for the first 2 years while you make up your mind what your interests are. In my first semester, Wintersemester 1990/91, I took an introductory inorganic chemistry class, a qualitative inorganic analytical laboratory, an experimental physics class, and a mathematics for chemists class.
In the inorganic chemistry class, we used the "Lehrbuch der Anorganischen Chemie" by Holleman and Wiberg. An English edition of this book, "Inorganic Chemistry" by Holleman and Wiberg, has recently been released. This book is one of the best inorganic chemistry books that I know. On the one hand, it gives an extensive and systematic discussion of the elements, their properties, and the properties of many important compounds. On the other hand, it describes the underlying principles in great depth. To the best of my knowledge, there is no other inorganic textbook, not even the Greenwood and Earnshaw, that offers such a detailed description of such a large amount of knowledge. During my very first lecture, the Prof. said while holding the Holleman in the air: "Wenn Sie alles wissen was in diesem Buche steht, sind Sie ein guter Diplomchemiker." ("If you know everything that is in this book, you are a good Master chemist."). Before some of my inorganic labs we had individual meetings, about 20 to 30 min long, with our TAs where they asked us questions to see if we had studied the material that was currently covered in class. In many cases the TA just opened the Holleman and asked us about the material that first crossed his or her eyes. I highly recommend the Holleman for every chemist, regardless of the field of specialization and whether you are a student, professor, or working in industry. When I went to the USA in 1996, I took my Holleman with me. My Holleman is also now with me in Atlanta.
Another good book we used in the inorganic chemistry class is "Anorganische Chemie" by Erwin Riedel. This book describes the same material as the Holleman, but it is written so that chemistry novices can better understand the material.
In the qualitative inorganic analytical laboratory, we mainly did experiments based upon the "Einführung in das anorganisch-chemische Praktikum" by Jander and Blasius. In this lab we performed qualitative analyses for nearly every element in the periodic table. I think such a lab is nowadays only part of the curriculum at European universities.
The experimental physics class was mainly based upon the physics textbook by Gerthsen. This class was fairly challenging, as it was the same introductory class that also the physics and mathematics students had to take. There was no official textbook for the mathematics for chemists class, it was mainly based upon the notes of the professor. So, I can't offer a link to a specific Amazon book. :)
In my second semester, Summersemester 1991, I continued the experimental physics class and the mathematics for chemists class. In addition, I took a quantitative inorganic analytical laboratory and class, and a physics laboratory. Also, I took an optional (not required as a part of the curriculum, just learning, no grades) class about gem and meteorite science.
In the quantitative inorganic analytical laboratory, we mainly did experiments based upon the "Quantitativ-anorganisches Praktikum" by Müller and the book "Ausführung quantitativer Analysen" by the Biltz brothers. Since the Biltz book is not available from Amazon, I can't offer a link to it. :) In this lab we performed many inorganic quantitative analyses which often required tedious work. In retrospect, however, this lab taught me how to work carefully and pay attention to detail. I think such a lab is nowadays only part of the curriculum at European universities.
The quantitative inorganic analytical class covered mainly the theoretical principles that we applied in the accompanying lab. The book that was used was the "Lehrwerk Chemie." The Lehrwerk Chemie is a series of books that cover all aspects of chemistry. It was published in the former DDR and is nowadays not available anymore.
The physics laboratory covered mainly experiments from the book "Physikalisches Praktikum" by Ilberg. It was published in the former DDR and is nowadays not available anymore. The experiments we performed were related to the material covered in the experimental physics class.
In my third semester, Wintersemester 1991/92, I continued the mathematics for chemists class. In addition, I took an organic chemistry class and laboratory and a physical chemistry class and laboratory.
In the organic chemistry laboratory, we mainly did synthetic experiments from the "Organikum" and the original literature. The Organikum is one of a small number of chemistry books that were published in the former DDR and that 'survived' the reunification of Germany. In other words, the publisher continued to print it, and even new editions were prepared, after October 3rd, 1990.
In my fourth semester, Summersemester 1992, I continued the organic chemistry class and laboratory and the physical chemistry class and laboratory.
At the end of those two years of study we had a comprehensive exam called "Vordiplom." For this exam, within a time frame of 6 weeks, each student had to meet individually for about 45 min with the professors who taught the inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physical chemistry, and physics class. A TA was also present to take the minutes. This exam counted for 50 % of the final grade in each of those classes. In this oral exam the professor could ask anything that was ever covered in either the class or the accompanying lab. So, you can imagine that one had to study hard throughout the two years of classes and in the weeks preceding the exam. In case you are curious, my final grades after these two years of studies were as follows: 1.7 for the introductory inorganic chemistry class and qualitative inorganic analytical laboratory, 2.0 for the experimental physics class and physics laboratory, 2.0 for the quantitative inorganic analytical laboratory and class, 1.0 for the mathematics for chemists class, 1.7 for the organic chemistry class and laboratory, and 1.8 for the physical chemistry class and laboratory (scale: 1 - 5, with 1 being the best possible grade). :)
After those exams, in September and October of 1992, I went for 8 weeks to the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. This was my first visit to the United States of America. In Knoxville, for the first time, I learned hands-on how to use many analytical instruments, such as NMR, Mass-Spec, Cyclic Voltametry, ESCA, and an X-ray diffractometer. The hardest part of this stay in Knoxville were the last two weeks. I was very sad that I had to leave the US.
In my fifth semester, Wintersemester 1992/93, I took an advanced inorganic chemistry class and laboratory, an advanced organic chemistry class and laboratory, an advanced physical chemistry class and laboratory, and a chemical engineering class and laboratory. The chemical engineering class and laboratory were a required part of the curriculum, however there were no grades.
In my sixth semester, Summersemester 1993, I continued the advanced inorganic chemistry class and laboratory, the advanced organic chemistry class and laboratory, the advanced physical chemistry class and laboratory, and the chemical engineering class and laboratory. In addition, I took a class about chemical toxicology.
Before the start of the next semester, Wintersemester 1993/94, I worked in the summer for a month under the supervision of Prof. Gräfe at the Hans-Knöll-Institute for Natural Substances Research in Jena. While working in his lab, I was mainly purifying compouds, that had been extracted from plants, by HPLC.
In my seventh semester, Wintersemester 1993/94, I took a specialization class and laboratory in bioinorganic chemistry ("Wahlpflichtfach"), a specialization class and laboratory in physical chemistry ("Schwerpunktfach"), a class and laboratory in analytical chemistry, a class and laboratory about single crystal X-ray structure determination, and a class called "biotechnology for chemists." The specialization class in physical chemistry was based upon the professor's notes and involved mainly his research (spectroscopy) and interests (thermodynamics), while spectroscopic measurements were mainly performed in the lab. The class and laboratory in analytical chemistry were a required part of the curriculum, however there were no grades. The biotechnology for chemists class was an optional (not required as a part of the curriculum, just learning, no grades) class.
In my eighth semester, Summersemester 1994, I continued the specialization class and laboratory in bioinorganic chemistry, the specialization class and laboratory in physical chemistry, the class and laboratory in analytical chemistry, and the class and laboratory about single crystal X-ray structure determination. In addition, I took a class about special law topics for chemists. The law class was a required part of the curriculum, however there were no grades.
From November 1993 through June 1994 I was working as an undergraduate student in the laboratory of Prof. Jäger. My main tasks were to synthesize some organic ligands and then to insert a metal, which was in most cases Cu. I also attempted to do reactions on the ligand with the metal being present.
At the end of those four years of study we had a comprehensive exam called "Diplomhauptprüfung." For this exam, within a time frame of 6 weeks, each student had to meet individually for about 45 min with one of the professors who taught inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physical chemistry, chemical engineering, and the "Wahlpflichtfach," which was in my case bioinorganic chemistry. A TA was also present to take the minutes. The result of this exam determined the final grade on the "Diplom Prüfungszeugnis," that is, the certificate for the German "Master's of Science in Chemistry" degree. In this oral exam the professor could ask anything that is related to the field. In case you are curious, my grades were as follows: 1.8 in inorganic chemistry, 1.4 in organic chemistry, 1.0 in physical chemistry, 1.3 in chemical engineering, and 1.4 in bioinorganic chemistry (scale: 1 - 5, with 1 being the best possible grade). :)
Following my four years of study at the Friedrich-Schiller Universität in Jena, Germany, I went for one year to the University of Texas at Austin to do the research for my German "Diplomchemiker" degree ("Master's in Science of Chemistry"). I went to Austin with the help of an exchange program, see also here. I did my research in the laboratory of Prof. Sessler. My aim was to synthesize a water-soluble form of the expanded porphyrin rubyrin. All my chemistry worked fine up to the point of having a rubyrin bismethylester. Up to this point I synthesized substituted pyrrols and oligopyrrols and I formed the macrocycle and purified it by column chromatography. So far rubyrin was only handled in organic solvents such as methanol and dichloromethane; in these solvents rubyrin is stable. To obtain a water-soluble rubyrin I had now to perform chemistry on the periphery of the macrocycle. This required basic reaction conditions. Unfortunately, it turned out that rubyrin decomposes very rapidly in basic solution. Therefore, I was only able to obtain mass spectrometric evidence that one of my desired compounds had indeed formed. Based upon my results I wrote my "Diplomarbeit" ("Master's Thesis"), which is entitled "Synthesis of water-soluble Rubyrin." You can obtain a copy of it from the library of the Friedrich-Schiller Universität in Jena, Germany, or from me. Here are the abstract and table of contents of my Diplomarbeit. While studying at the University of Texas at Austin I decided that I wanted to go to graduate school in the United States of America.
For my Diplomarbeit I received a 1.0. :) This grade, together with the grades from the Diplomhauptprüfung: 1.8 in inorganic chemistry, 1.4 in organic chemistry, 1.0 in physical chemistry, 1.3 in chemical engineering, and 1.4 in bioinorganic chemistry, determined my final grade for my 5 years of study to obtain the German "Diplomchemiker" (Dipl.-Chem.) degree ("Master's of Science in Chemistry"). I received the Diplomchemiker degree in September of 1995. :) Using the following conversions, best possible grade: 1.0 (Germany) = 4.0 (USA) and worst possible grade: 5.0 (Germany) = 0.0 (USA), my final GPA was 3.68. :)
See my Chemistry Page Part II for my Study Towards the Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Chemistry (Ph.D. or Dr.) and my scientific life thereafter. :)
