Professor and Associate Dean, Graduate College

Office: 124 McFall Center
Phone: (419) 372-9450/2664
Email: snavely@bgsu.edu
Personal site: Visit

Biographical Facts
Joined the faculty in 1985
Ph.D., Physical Chemistry, Yale University (1983)
B.S., Chemistry, Ohio State University (1977)

Administrative
Dr. Snavely has served as the Associate Dean in the Graduate College since July 2003. As Associate Dean, Dr. Snavely works with the Dean of the Graduate College and the Director of Sponsored Programs and Research (SPAR) to improve the research environment at BGSU. This involves working with faculty members to encourage participation in federal/state funded research and arranging meetings with faculty from BGSU to meet with members of other universities to encourage collaboration. Dr. Snavely also serves on the Faculty Research Committee (the group that evaluates faculty research incentive grants) and the Intellectual Property and Patent Committee. In addition, Dr. Snavely participates in the graduate enterprise of the entire university. Specifically she handles the day to day jobs of working with faculty on graduate curriculum development, handling academic honesty violations, monitoring student academic progress, forming of dissertation committees, evaluating graduate faculty status, promoting graduate assessment, and other activities.

Research
The research group of Professor Deanne Snavely has developed a radical chain polymerization method that uses the absorption of visible light by vibrational overtone states to initiate polymerization reactions. Vibrational overtone absorptions of the fifth and third CH stretching vibrational transitions are used to activate a radical precursor capable of initiating polymerization. This new photopolymerization process does not use typical excited electronic state photochemistry that governs most photopolymerization processes. Vibrational overtone photochemistry is initiated through excited vibrational states of the ground electronic state, so initiators employed in thermal polymerization processes are used. This distinction between excited electronic state and excited vibrational state means that the photon energies needed for initiation can be lower that those needed in electronic state photopolymerization. Furthermore it is possible to vary the rate of the polymerization reaction by tuning the excitation laser wavelength to different vibrational overtone absorption features or wavelengths where no absorption occurs. Vibrational overtone polymerization offers the possibility of long wavelength photoinitiation, laser selective photo-degeneration and wavelength selectivity.

Future research in this area will capitalize on and investigate the unique aspects of vibrational overtone polymerization.

• Long wavelength initiation and monomers for medical applications – Vibrational overtone polymerization will be employed in micro-fabrication processes or in medical application where small quantities of polymer are required in precise locations. Often these processes require wavelength selectivity and long wavelength initiation so as to penetrate into flesh or not damage surrounding components.
  
  
• Average molecular mass and thermal characteristics of vibrational overtone polymers – Given the novel polymerization process, a study of the average molecular mass and thermal characteristics should be undertaken. The results of these studies will be compared to thermal polymerization.
  
  
• Spatial control for imaging or surface structure – Starting with a suitable monomer, vibrational overtone techniques will be used to photo-crosslink a polymer film. Initial studies will involve a spin-coated film with timed irradiation in order to create cross-linked patterns on the film. The wavelength selectivity of this process will be investigated.
  
  
• Laser selective degradation of polymer films – Laser vibrational overtone irradiation will be used to degrade polymer films. Polymers with photoreactive groups will be irradiated on their various vibrational overtone absorption features. The surface will then be imaged to observe the photo damage. This process will be initiated by long wavelength light and it is anticipated that it will have the selectivity of vibrational overtone polymerization.