Rina Tannenbaum Professor Georgia Institute of Technology Materials Science and Engineering 771 Ferst Drive, N.W. Atlanta, GA 30332-0245 Office:  Love Bldg., Room 274 Phone: 404.385.1235  | Fax: 404.894.9140 rina.tannenbaum@mse.gatech.edu Website: www.nanocpi.gatech.edu B.Sc. Chemistry and Physics, 1974, Hebrew University M.Sc. Physical Chemistry, 1978, The Weizmann Institute of Science D.Sc. Chemical Engineering, 1982, ETH-Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Research Interests Soft condensed matter Nanoscale self-assembly Chemistry at  interfaces Dr. Tannenbaum’s research focuses on the design of nanophase materials, which are a new generation of advanced materials that exhibit unusual physical properties of technological importance. The unique properties of nanostructured materials are entirely determined by their atomic scale structures, particularly the structures of interfaces and surfaces. Controlling the dimensions, spatial arrangements and interfacial interactions of the individual components of a multi-component material on the nanoscopic level is crucial in the fabrication of devices with well-defined applications. Engineering of materials and devices on the nanometer scale is of considerable interest in electronics, optics, catalysis, ceramics, and magnetic storage. Nanoclusters and the physical and chemical functional specificity and selectivity they possess, suggest them as ideal building blocks for one-, two- and three-dimensional cluster self-assembled super lattice structures. Well-defined ordered solids prepared from tailored nanocrystalline building blocks provide new opportunities for optimizing and enhancing the properties and performance of the materials. This is a new initiative and area of research on cluster engineered materials. By its very nature, this area of research is highly interdisciplinary, since it draws from several fundamental disciplines, i.e. inorganic chemistry, physical chemistry, soft condensed matter physics, thermodynamics and statistics. The main thrust of Dr. Tannenbaum’s research program is centered on the understanding of the molecular basis for the bulk versus the discrete behavior exhibited by multicomponent systems involving polymers and metal nanoclusters. The clusters size is controlled via their chemical synthesis in viscous media, i.e. polymer solutions of varying concentrations and molecular weights, thus limiting the nucleation and growth process. Her research concentrates on the design, synthesis and characterization of self-assembled, multifunctional materials, with particular emphasis on the size optimization, controllability and spatial architecture of the metal nanocluster moiety. A direct consequence of this research is the creation of polymer-induced, self-assembled, multi-functional nanoparticulate materials, i.e.materials in which the metal clusters are phase separated within the polymer according to a predetermined spatial architecture. This spatial architecture can be achieved by the utilization of the phase separation and microdomain formation in multi-component polymers with self-organizing properties, i.e. block copolymers, for the anisotropic synthesis of nanoparticulate composites. Preliminary results obtained by Dr. Tannenbaum and her group suggest that the self-assembly approach to the formation of patterned, composite nanomaterials is of crucial importance at these material length scales. This approach utilizes the fundamental properties of hierarchical organization of molecules, which allows the manipulation of the degree of aggregation of nanomaterials and their spatial organization. This research avenue will provide a methodical, comprehensive understanding of the bonding-structure -function relationship in multi-component, metal-polymer nanostructure, and it will pave the way for applications in the area of optical, biomedical and electronic devices. Return to top She is a member of the American Chemical Society (ACS), Materials Research Society (MRS), and Americal Physical Society (APS). Dr. Tannenbaum is the author of a book, several book chapters and over 50 refereed journal publications. She has received the Henry Gutwirth Prize for the Advancement of Scientific Research and the Kunin-Lunenfeld Foundation Award. Selected Publications Adsorption and wetting characteristics of polyelectrolyte multilayers on plasma modified porous polyethylene, G. Greene,G. Yao,and Rina Tannenbaum, Langmuir  2004, 20(7), 2739-2745. Re-evaluation of the mechanism of the stoichiometric hydroformylation of olefins with cobalt carbonyls as catalysts, R. Tanenbaum and G. Bor, J. Molec. Catal. A 2004, 215(1-2), 33-43. Infrared study of the kinetics and mechanism of adsorption of acrylic polymers on alumina surfaces, R. Tannenbaum, S. King, J. Lecy, M. Tirrell and L. Potts, Langmuir2004,20(11), 4507-4514. Adsorption and polymer film formation on metal nanoclusters, E. H. Tadd, A. Zeno, M. Zubris, N. Dan and R. Tannenbaum, Macromolecules2003, 36(17), 6497-6502. Kinetics of nucleation, growth and stabilization of cobalt oxide nanoclusters, S. King, K. Hyunh, and R. Tannenbaum, J. Phys. Chem. B  2003, 107(44), 12097-12104. Polymer-mediated alignment of carbon nanotubes under high magnetic fields, H. Garmestani, M. S. Al-Haik, K. Dahmen, R. Tannenbaum, D. Li, S. S. Sablin and M. Y. Hussaini, Adv. Mater.2003, 15(22), 1918-1921. Spatial distribution of metal nanoclusters in block copolymers, E. H. Tadd, John Bradley and R. Tannenbaum, Langmuir2002, 18(6), 2378-2384 (Web ASAP 2/8/02). Spectroscopic study of the chemistry at the Cr-PMMA interface, R. Tannenbaum, C. Hakanson, A. D. Zeno and M. Tirrell, Langmuir2002, 18(14), 5592-5599 (Web ASAP 6/12/02). Shape control of iron oxide nanoclusters in polymeric media R. Tannenbaum, S. Reich, C. L. Flenniken and E. P. Goldberg, Adv. Mat.2002, 14(19), 1402-1405. Return to top