The Fischer Group
nanomaterials research at the interface of organic chemistry and condensed matter physics
WE ARE A SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH GROUP IN THE DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY AT UC BERKELEY
Our group leverages the tools of organic synthesis, reticular chemistry, and bottom-up design to realize exotic electronic and magnetic structures in custom engineered covalent carbon nanomaterials. Recent notable successes include the realization of intrinsically metallic graphene nanoribbons, highly tunable (topological) semiconductors, and magnetically ordered phases in 1D and 2D lattices.
Thinking about joining our research team?
Interested in organic materials synthesis or scanning tunneling microscopy?
Check out our open positions, or send us an email, say hi.
CHECK OUT OUR HIGHLIGHTS
Our Science
Our work is guided by molecular orbital engineering approaches used to fine-tune the wave function of π-conjugated molecular organic and inorganic lattices to access exotic electronic structures synthetic covalent quantum nanomaterials. We draw inspiration from theory and bottom-up chemical design to develop new molecular synthetic tools that provide atomically precise control over geometric parameters (e.g., length, width, or symmetry), the position and density of dopant atoms, and the interaction of changes and spins within custom tailored molecular lattices.
Square Lattices with
Exotic Band Structures
Magnetic Ordering in
Graphene Nanoribbons
NANOMATERIALS SYNTHESIS
Our research focuses on the design and bottom-up synthesis of molecular precursors that serve as the building blocks for extended 1D and 2D lattices. This core effort expands on the reticular tools developed for COF and MOF structures, develops new on-surface polymerization techniques, and builds on a vast library of extended polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Rather than focusing on macroscopic physical properties our team targets unusual electronic and magnetic states the emerge within the extended lattice of 1D or 2D covalent quantum nanomaterials that set the technological foundation for faster and more energy efficient integrated circuit architectures.
SCANNING TUNNELING MICROSCOPY
A core competency that sets our scientific effort apart is our close integration of synthesis with atomically resolved scanning probe techniques. Our team operates cryogenic (4K) scanning tunneling microscopes that not only allow us to inspect the precise atomic positions and bonding in bottom-up synthesized nanomaterials but directly image their electronic structure. Using modern scanning tunneling spectroscopy tools we visualize the spatial distribution of molecular orbitals, the nodal pattern that emerge from the wave function within a periodic lattice, and even probe the localization of unpaired electron spins with sub-nanometer resolution.
MEET US
Our Team
Felix Raoul Fischer
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR / Professor
Prof. Fischer received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETHZ). Prior to joining the Faculty at UC Berkeley as an Assistant Professor he was a German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Columbia University New York.
Jieqi (Jackie) Chen
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Jieqi graduated with a B.S. in Chemistry from Shanghai Jiao Tong University where he explored the field of supramolecular chemistry and functional polymers. He is currently interested in on-surface self-assembly structures and GNRs with exciting physics.
Alex Da Rosa
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Alex is from Orinda, California. He graduated with a B.A. in Chemistry at Amherst College in 2024, where he explored leveraging conformational inversion for ferroelectricity. He is recently interested in the design of Van der Waals materials.
Jiahe Ji
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Jieqi graduated with a B.S. in chemistry from the University of Washington. His research interest is in organic synthesis, mostly on triangulenes and other precursors for surface chemistry.
Fujia Liu
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Fujia graduated from Fudan University with a B.A. in Macromolecular Materials and Engineering. His current research interest is synthesizing functional graphene nanoribbons and 2D materials for various applications.
Jakov Smesny
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Jakov graduated with a BSc in Materials Engineering and Nanotechnology from the Polytechnic of Milan and a MSc in Micro- and Nanosystems from ETH Zürich. He is interested in novel approaches to large-area atomically defined low-dimensional nanoarchitectures featuring unusual and precisely engineered electronic properties.
Pranav Viswanathan
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Pranav is from Ashland, MA. He completed his BS in Chemistry at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he worked under Dr. Murugappan Muthukumar studying the self-assembly and phase behavior of charged polymer solutions. His current research focuses on the covalent functionalization of TMDs for the purpose of developing novel quantum materials.
Yuyi Yan
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Yuyi graduated with a B.S. in Physics from Southeast University in 2020. He received his M.E. in Materials Physics and Chemistry from Shanghai University in 2023 worked under Prof. Qiang Sun. His current research interest lies in the fabrication and characterization of graphene nanoribbons with novel magnetic and topological properties.
Han Xuan Wong
GRADUATE RESEARCHER
Han graduated with a B.Eng. in Materials Science and Engineering from Imperial College London, UK. His current research is aimed at the scalable integration of nanographenes into electronic devices.
Junjie (Jun) Yu
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHER
Jun is a Chemistry major at UC Berkeley whose research interests include the bottom-up synthesis and fabrication of two-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures and their integration into next-generation electronic devices.
Michael Abdulnour
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHER
Michael is a chemical engineering major at UC Berkeley who transferred from Santa Barbara City College. His research interests lie in the synthesis of functional 2D organic compounds that can be utilized in fields like nanoelectronics and polymers.
Diego Alcantar
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHER
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Keegan Piniones
UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCHER
Keegan is a chemical biology major who transferred to UC Berkeley. His research interests are in the bottom-up synthesis of carbon nanomaterials.
OUR RESEARCH IS SUPPORTED BY
Our Funders
We are grateful for the trust and generous financial support provided by federal funding agencies and private foundations that support our science.
FROM THE BLOG
Latest News
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Congratulations to Dr. Adam Cronin and Dr. Christina Dadich!!!
Read more: Congratulations to Dr. Adam Cronin and Dr. Christina Dadich!!!Huge congratulations to Christina and Adam on earning their Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of California, Berkeley! We are incredibly proud of all your hard work, perseverance, and scientific achievements. Wishing you both continued success and exciting…
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Congratulations Pranav!!
Read more: Congratulations Pranav!!Huge congratulations to Pranav on being awarded a 2026 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship!
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Ferromagnetic Insulator to Metal Transition in Non-Centrosymmetric Graphene Nanoribbons
Read more: Ferromagnetic Insulator to Metal Transition in Non-Centrosymmetric Graphene NanoribbonsCongratulations to Aidan, Michael & Weichen who had their paper accepted in The Journal of the American Chemical Society today! By engineering molecular symmetry, sublattice imbalance, and the hybridization of low-energy zero modes within the GNR unit cell,…