Jens Beckmann (born 1970) is a German-Australian scientist working as professor in the area of synthetic

inorganic An inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds⁠that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as '' inorganic chemistry''. Inor ...

and

organometallic chemistry Organometallic chemistry is the study of organometallic compounds, chemical compounds containing at least one chemical bond between a carbon atom of an organic molecule and a metal, including alkali, alkaline earth, and transition metals, and so ...

at the

University of Bremen The University of Bremen () is a public university in Bremen, Germany, with approximately 18,400 students from 117 countries. Its 12 faculties offer more than 100 degree programs. The University of Bremen has been among the top 50 European rese ...

since 2010. Previously he worked as assistant professor at the

Free University of Berlin The Free University of Berlin (, often abbreviated as FU Berlin or simply FU) is a public university, public research university in Berlin, Germany. It was founded in West Berlin in 1948 with American support during the early Cold War period a ...

(2004–2010) and as lecturer at

Deakin University Deakin University is a public university in Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1974 with antecedent history since 1887, the university was named after Alfred Deakin, the second Prime Minister of Australia and a founding father of Australian Fede ...

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

(2002–2004). He is best known for the preparation of reactive and functional molecules including the first stable

nitrene In chemistry, a nitrene or imene () is the nitrogen analogue of a carbene. The nitrogen atom is uncharged and valence (chemistry)#monovalent, monovalent, so it has only 6 electrons in its valence level—two covalent bonded and four non-bonded e ...

Early life and education

Beckmann was born in December 1970 in

Arnsberg Arnsberg (; ) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg (region), Arnsberg administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Ho ...

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and grew up in the near village of Oeventrop. He graduated from the Gymnasium Laurentianum Arnsberg obtaining his Abitur in 1990. He studied

Chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

at the

University of Dortmund TU Dortmund University () is a technical university in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany with over 35,000 students, and over 6,000 staff including 300 professors, offering around 80 Bachelor's and master's degree programs. It is situate ...

, where he obtained his Diploma in 1995 and his Ph.D. ("Dr. rer nat.") in 1999 under the supervision of Prof Klaus Jurkschat. Starting in early 2000, he worked for two years as Feodor Lynen fellow of the

Alexander von Humboldt foundation The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation () is a foundation that promotes international academic cooperation between scientists and scholars from Germany and abroad. Established by the government of the Federal Republic of Germany, it is funded by t ...

at Deakin University Geelong under the guidance of Prof Dainis Dakternieks.

Career

Beckmann's first independent facility position was at the Centre for Chiral and Molecular Technologies at Deakin. With his small research group, he investigated functional organotin and organotellurium compounds including polymeric telluroxanes and bimetallic systems capable of absorbing

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...

from

air An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosph ...

. Besides his academic work, he was involved in the commercial research activities of the spin-off company ''Chirogen Pty Ltd'' in 2002 to 2004, developing enantioselective reducing agents. At the Institute for Chemistry and Biochemistry, he continued working as an assistant professor from 2004 to 2010 with his group on heavy ''p''-block element compounds, which included (mixed valent)

tellurium Tellurium is a chemical element; it has symbol Te and atomic number 52. It is a brittle, mildly toxic, rare, silver-white metalloid. Tellurium is chemically related to selenium and sulfur, all three of which are chalcogens. It is occasionally fou ...

halide In chemistry, a halide (rarely halogenide) is a binary chemical compound, of which one part is a halogen atom and the other part is an element or radical that is less electronegative (or more electropositive) than the halogen, to make a fl ...

s, and well-defined tellurinic, telluronic and stibonic

acid An acid is a molecule or ion capable of either donating a proton (i.e. Hydron, hydrogen cation, H+), known as a Brønsted–Lowry acid–base theory, Brønsted–Lowry acid, or forming a covalent bond with an electron pair, known as a Lewis ...

s. Since 2010, he has been an associate professor at the University of Bremen. At the Faculty for Biology and Chemistry, Beckmann co-founded the Institute for

Inorganic Chemistry Inorganic chemistry deals with chemical synthesis, synthesis and behavior of inorganic compound, inorganic and organometallic chemistry, organometallic compounds. This field covers chemical compounds that are not carbon-based, which are the subj ...

and

Crystallography Crystallography is the branch of science devoted to the study of molecular and crystalline structure and properties. The word ''crystallography'' is derived from the Ancient Greek word (; "clear ice, rock-crystal"), and (; "to write"). In J ...

in 2015. His research interests span a wide range including topics in Lewis Acid Chemistry, Brønsted Acid Chemistry,

Carbene In organic chemistry, a carbene is a molecule containing a neutral carbon atom with a Valence (chemistry), valence of two and two unshared valence electrons. The general formula is or where the R represents substituents or hydrogen atoms. Th ...

Analogous, Radical Chemistry, (

Photoluminescent Photoluminescence (abbreviated as PL) is light emission from any form of matter after the absorption of photons (electromagnetic radiation). It is one of many forms of luminescence (light emission) and is initiated by photoexcitation (i.e. ph ...

) Coinage Meal Complexes and Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs). In 2020 his group published sila-ibuprofen, a derivative of the painkiller

ibuprofen Ibuprofen is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that is used to relieve pain, fever, and inflammation. This includes dysmenorrhea, painful menstrual periods, migraines, and rheumatoid arthritis. It can be taken oral administration, ...

, using a silicon/carbon switch strategy to improve the solubility. In 2024 his group published the first stable

with a triplet electronic ground state.

Awards and honors

* Rudolf Chaudoire-Award of the

for the best Ph.D. thesis in 1999. * Feodor Lynen Scholarship of the Alexander von Humboldt-Foundation * Doctor honoris causa from the N. N. Vorozhtsov Novosibrisk Institute of Organic Chemistry of the

Russian Academy of Science The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation; and additional scientific and social units such ...

, Siberian Branch.

Books & publications

He is the author of more than 270 peer-reviewed publications, 9 book chapters and 16 patent applications.

References

External links

Official website at the University of Bremen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beckmann, Jens 1970 births Academic staff of the Free University of Berlin Academic staff of the University of Bremen Arnsberg Living people People from Arnsberg Deakin University University of Bremen German chemists