L.L. (Lotte) Metz

Lotte is currently working on the preparation of atomically precise nanoclusters by means of supramolecular self-assembly. This research project is part of the CBBC flagship program ‘fundamentals of catalysis’, which is dedicated to unravelling the fundamental structure-activity relationships of nanosized catalysts in hydrogenation reactions. The goal is to uncover unique activity and/or selectivity of well-defined nanoclusters. Commonly, nanoparticle synthesis results in particles with a statistical size distribution. However, the reactivity of these differently sized particles can vary tremendously. Therefore, it is highly desired to precisely control the size and composition of these particles. For this reason, the goal of this project is to synthesize a ‘molecular mold’ for preparing a particle precisely. It is envisioned this can be done by pre-organizing the metal precursor in a self-assembled sphere, after which this system can be reduced to form uniform particles.

2010-2014 Bachelor Organic Chemistry, Hogeschool Utrecht

2015-2017 Master chemistry (Molecular design synthesis and catalysis track), University of Amsterdam

• Erasmus exchange (6 months) at Copenhagen University (Center for exploitation of solar energy)
• Research project at the Advance Research Centre for Nanolithography (ARCNL)

2017 – 2018 Technologist at Avantium (VOLTA electrochemistry team)

2018 – present PhD Candidate, University of Amsterdam