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Murielle Watzky

Murielle Watzky

Department Chair and Associate Professor

Contact Information

Phone
970-351-3551
Fax
970-351-2533
Mailing Address
University of Northern Colorado
Chemistry and Biochemistry
Campus Box 98
Greeley, CO 80639

Education

Diplome d'Ingenieur - Ecole Superieure de Chimie Industrielle de Lyon, France (Chemistry and Chemical Engineering)
Ph.D. - Wayne State University (Physical Inorganic Chemistry)
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Colorado State University

Research/Areas of Interest

Biosynthetic pathways for silver metal nanoparticles
Silver nanoparticles are amongst the most abundantly produced nanomaterials, in large part due to their wide-spectrum antimicrobial properties and their incorporation in everyday household products. The use of plant extracts to prepare silver nanoparticles from the bioreduction of silver ions is well reported in the literature; however, a molecular understanding of the formation and stabilization of these metal nanoparticles, needed to attain nanoparticle size control and nanoparticle synthesis reproducibility, is mostly lacking, and is a focus of our research.

Experimental probes of noble metal nanoparticle formation
We are investigating experimental probes of the kinetics of noble metal nanoparticle formation via surface plasmon resonance versus other, more direct, methods.

Plasmonic metal nanoparticles as biosensors
We are probing the strong optical sensitivity of noble metal nanoparticles via their surface plasmon resonance towards the detection of analytes and their application as biosensors.

Link to Google Scholar page: https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=SlyuIGkAAAAJ&hl=en

Publications/Creative Works

Recent Publications
Selected Publications Prior to UNC