Global Utilities

La Trobe University
Department of Chemistry

Research Areas

The Department of Chemistry is one of the foundation departments of the University and has a faculty that is very active in research and teaching. The Department, which has an international reputation in several areas, is well equipped with 'state-of-the-art' instrumentation to support its research. The Department is also active in the research program of the Research Centre for Materials and Surface Science, which involves collaboration with Physics.

The research programs of the Department of Chemistry fall into five main areas. They are:

  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Chemical Structure and Energetics
  • Chemical Mechanistics and Environmental Reactions
  • Medicinal and Biological Chemistry
  • Surface and Materials Chemistry

These areas are not the same as the traditional division of Chemistry into the three areas of Inorganic, Organic and Physical, nor are they completely separate and distinct. There is considerable interaction between them, and in many cases they share research tools and methods. A most important component of the Department's research programs is the training of postgraduate students in research methods generally and in the application of the latest specialised instrumental techniques.