PhD Studentship: Sustainable Catalysis with Sb and Bi Pincer Complexes

Application deadline: 31/01/2026
Research theme: Inorganic Chemistry

UK only

This 3.5-year PhD studentship is open to Home (UK) applicants and EU students with settled status. The successful candidate will receive an annual tax-free stipend set at the UKRI rate (£20,780 for 2025/26; subject to annual uplift), and tuition fees will be paid. We expect the stipend to increase each year. 

Interviews will take place in February 2026.

We recommend that you apply early as the advert may be removed before the deadline.

This fully funded 3.5-year PhD studentship is available for an outstanding and ambitious student, offering an exciting opportunity to explore main group-mediated small molecule activation and catalysis using heavy pnictogen elements (Sb and Bi) as sustainable alternatives to transition metals. You will join a dynamic research environment focused on the metallomimetic reactivity of main group elements and sustainable catalysis.

Coupling planar Sb and Bi centres with redox-active pincer ligands holds vast potential for developing a new class of main group catalysts with the potential to rival or even exceed the performance of traditional transition metal systems in selected transformations. Our group has recently demonstrated that these unusual compounds feature a wide range of unique characteristics (see representative publications below). These include ambiphilic behaviour, unprecedented photophysical properties, ligand-controlled redox reactions and the stabilisation of exotic radical states. Consequently, this intriguing class of compounds offers a rich landscape for future applications in catalysis.

As part of this project, you will synthesise planar Sb and Bi pincer complexes, investigate their element-specific reactivity, and contribute to the design of transition metal-free catalytic cycles. The work combines synthetic inorganic chemistry, mechanistic studies, and photochemical methods, offering excellent interdisciplinary training.

Our group has recently joined the University of Manchester, and you will benefit from a small, supportive team with close supervision from senior PhD students and the PI.

Representative publications:
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2025 e202515545
ChemRxiv 2025 DOI: 10.26434/chemrxiv-2025-v78zc-v2
ChemRxiv 2025 DOI: 10.26434/chemrxiv-2025-j2p13
Chem. Sci. 2024, 15, 6036–6043
Chem. Sci. 2021, 7, 1698–1700

Applicants should have, or expect to achieve, at least a 2.1 honours degree or a Master’s (or international equivalent) in Chemistry. Experience in Schlenk-line and glovebox techniques is highly desirable.

Interviews will take place in February 2026.

To apply, please contact the main supervisor, Dr Josh Abbenseth - josh.abbenseth@manchester.ac.uk. Please include details of your current level of study, academic background and any relevant experience and include a paragraph about your motivation to study this PhD project.

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