Welcome to the Gaynor Laboratory! We are a team of people who seek to understand how complex molecules and materials can use light to move charge and energy in photoexcited states of condensed phases. It is our hope that a deeper understanding of interesting photochemical dynamics will enable future breakthroughs in more efficient technologies that can combat global issues that we face as a society. To achieve this, we push the frontiers of nonlinear multidimensional spectroscopy to measure dynamic couplings and correlations among electrons, nuclei, and their environment that govern fundamental processes like quantum coherence and the motion of charge and energy. Using pulses of light that range in duration from 100’s of “atto”-seconds (1 as = 10-18 seconds) to 10s of femtoseconds (1 fs = 10-15 seconds) and that spectrally span from 4 nm to 15000 nm, we track the motion of charge and energy – from quantum coherences to transfer and solvation – with exquisite sensitivity and selectivity.
Recent News
Gerrit Christenson Selected for Northwestern’s Joseph Lambert Award! Congrats Gerrit! – 01/2025
Gaynor Group Receives Seed Funding for collaborative work with Paltiel Group (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem) through Crown Family Fund / Israel Innovation Project! – 01/2025
First Gaynor Group manuscript submitted! January 2025
Matthew (Long Hai) Lai and Peter Carlson join the group. Welcome! – 12/2024
Gaynor Group Receives Seed Funding through Northwestern Materials Research Science and Engineering Center! – 11/2024
James is named 2024 RCSA Scialog Fellow for Molecular Basis of Cognition! – 10/2024
Edoardo Buttarazzi joins us from University of Napoli Federico II for six month graduate internship. Benvenuto Edoardo! – 10/2024
NU ISP undergraduate Andrew Li joins the team! Welcome Andrew! – 09/2024
Gerrit Christenson Passes Qual Exam (with flying colors)! Congrats Gerrit! – 06/2024
Dr. Pankaj Seliya joins the group. Welcome! -03/2024
James Gaynor and Gerrit Christenson present recent work at APS – 02/2024
Sarah Mersch and Alexander Seys join the group. Welcome! – 01/2024
New Gaynor Lab Research Website Launched! – 12/2023
Our lab is supported by the Department of Chemistry in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences at Northwestern University. We are located on the beautiful main campus in Evanston, Illinois, right on the shores of Lake Michigan.
Address
2145 Sheridan Road
Northwestern University
Evanston, IL 60208
Contact Us
Please contact Prof. James Gaynor for any questions about our group and our research
james.gaynor [at] northwestern [dot] edu