We are happy to welcome Dr. John Kollath to the STOE team! He conducted his master studies at RWTH Aachen and just graduated from there with a PhD in Chemistry. During his doctorate he focused on the interactions between supramolecular coordination oligomers and metal clusters. At STOE he will be using his chemistry and crystallography knowledge to help our customers find their perfect instrument.
To introduce John to you, we asked him a few questions about himself:
Which activities are you especially excited about in your new role at STOE?
I am particularly looking forward to getting to know all my colleagues at STOE and the contact with customers. After the years as a customer of STOE and the consistently positive impression, I am now looking forward to working as an employee of STOE. I am also excited to educate myself further in the field of marketing and to deepening my knowledge of crystallography.
What is your favorite diffraction technique and why?
My favorite diffraction technique is single crystal structural analysis. In the area of coordination compounds, I have come to appreciate single crystal structure analysis to determine the structure of my reaction products. Since the most common analytical methods have all failed in my study. This is how I have learned to appreciate my STOE diffractometer over the years.
Before working at STOE, what was the most unusual or interesting task you’ve ever had?
The most unusual task for me was the restructuring and digitization of the classes during the Corona pandemic. It was an opportunity to use video editing programs, for example, but I’m glad that interaction in presence is possible again.
What has been your favorite project in your academic career?
My favorite project was the interdisciplinary collaboration with other institutes to understand the reaction processes within my PhD. Especially in the joint meetings it offered the opportunity to learn about and work with many analytical methods and a wide variety of scientific employees. Particularly interesting were the different communication skills needed to be able to work together.
What is your favorite chemical substance?
Triaminoguanidinium, this building block for a variety of C3-symmetric ligands has accompanied me since my bachelor’s thesis throughout my studies up to my doctoral thesis.
If you’d have to recommend three books, which would they be?
Breaking News – Frank Schätzing
Achtsam morden – Karsten Dusse
Lieblingsessen – Einfach und köstlich – Björn Freitag, Thomas Mudersbach