Chemistry graduate student Manuel Carmona Pichardo describes himself as a “research nomad” — and for good reason. His work has taken him to research labs across Mexico, the US, Germany and Finland, pushing the boundaries of chemistry at each stop. Driven by a passion for exploration, Manuel has delved into nearly every corner of the field.
“I’ve done a little bit of everything,” Manuel said. “My undergrad research was computational, my master’s was in inorganic synthesis, in Finland I worked in biomimetics and catalysis, then organic, and now I’m focused on nanoscience.” Each experience has fueled his curiosity and sharpened his ability to tackle complex problems.
“What I love is solving problems,” he explained. “Give me a problem to solve, and I will find a way. That’s what I love.” For Manuel, chemistry is a puzzle just waiting to be pieced together, and his current research advisor, Matt Jones, shares that vision, encouraging his group members to take on some of nanoscience’s most challenging questions.
One major challenge in nanoscience is growing and arranging nanomaterials precisely enough to control their properties. In organic synthesis, chemists can control the structure of molecules like benzene by adding specific groups to exact positions on the rings, allowing for complex molecules with predictable functions. Enabling researchers to design tiny structures with tailored properties by achieving similar control with nanomaterials is the goal.
Currently, nanoparticle synthesis works a bit like following a recipe — follow the steps, and you’ll end up with a certain type of particle. However, the details of how and why particles form this way remain unclear. Manuel’s research aims to overcome this limitation by achieving selective functionalization of nanoparticles: adding molecules to their surfaces in specific locations, much like how chemists control sites on a benzene ring.
This task, however, is far from simple. For spherical nanoparticles, one might expect molecules to bind uniformly across the surface, yet they tend to gather in patches, “looking like broccoli,” Manuel said. The challenge intensifies with nanoparticles that aren’t spherical — shapes like prisms, cubes or even more complex forms with multiple edges, faces and tips. Each part of these shapes offers a different chemical environment, making it a mystery why some molecules, or ligands, favor certain spots over others.
Drawing on his diverse background in chemistry, Manuel has developed a method to observe where ligands bind on different nanoparticles and measure the binding with precision. Rice’s advanced equipment allows him to visualize binding sites in ways that many other nano labs cannot, opening the door to new strategies for controlling particle surfaces. “The ultimate goal of my work,” he said, “is to control at least one set of ligands to bind in a specific position on a specific particle.” This work could provide a blueprint for adding multiple ligands strategically to create nanoparticles with unique properties.
For Manuel, the excitement lies in exploring how these ligands interact with each other. He’s eager to see how different types of ligands might influence where each one binds, raising questions: “Will they compete? Which one will win? Which one will go where?”
Though answering all these questions may be too ambitious for one dissertation, Manuel is determined to develop methodologies that will allow future researchers to build on his work. Ultimately, his research could help unlock precise control for advanced applications in technology, medicine and more.