Marc MacKinnon
marcmackinnon.bsky.social
Marc MacKinnon
@marcmackinnon.bsky.social
Assistant Professor @ UofRegina. Organic Chemist. He/him
Exciting day, the first paper from my lab at the University of Regina in collaboration with the Steven lab at USask. Appearing in J. Phys. Chem. A @pubs.acs.org. We looked at excimer suppression in decorated pyrene derivatives.
pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/...
Excimer-Suppressed and Oxygen-Tolerant Photophysics of “Arm-like” Substituted Pyrene Derivatives
Pyrene-functionalized materials are extensively employed in photoluminescent applications, owing to their extended π-conjugation and favorable photophysical properties. However, their luminescent performance is often attenuated by π–π stacking-driven excimer formation and molecular oxygen quenching. To mitigate these undesirable effects, a novel class of 7-tert-butylpyren-2-ol derivatives with extended “arm-like” substituents at the 1,3-positions have been synthesized and their luminescent properties in solution have been thoroughly investigated. While the 2- and 7-positions of the pyrene core are frequently modified with hydroxyl and tert-butyl groups, this work presents the first introduction of “arm-like” substituents at the 1,3-positions. The stretched-out “arm-like” substituents not only introduce steric bulk to suppress excimer formation but also change the symmetry class of pyrene and modulate electron density at its 1,2,3,7-positions. These effects tune pyrene’s energy levels and result in moderate (0.4) to high (0.7) fluorescence quantum yields and shorter-lived fluorescence lifetimes ranging from ca. 20 to 40 ns. These shorter lifetimes lead to a reduction of the pyrene derivatives’ susceptibility to energy scavenging by molecular oxygen. In addition, the specific form of the “arms” are important. Alkyl-containing arms and alkenyl-containing arms exhibit different decay pathways, which is reflected by their disparate nonradiative rates. Thus, the introduction of “arm-like” modifications represents a promising approach to modulate the photophysical behavior of an important class of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, highlighting their applicability in next-generation electronic and optoelectronic systems.
pubs.acs.org
November 19, 2025 at 9:43 PM
Blue Jays, it continues
a man in a suit and tie is talking into a microphone while a crowd looks on .
ALT: a man in a suit and tie is talking into a microphone while a crowd looks on .
media.tenor.com
October 28, 2025 at 5:56 AM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
Duchamp Flies, by Carmen Cicero, 2009, 📸 by Frank Franklin II
October 8, 2025 at 1:39 AM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
Teams that Trey Yesavage has beaten in professional baseball this year:

- Fort Myers Mighty Mussels
- Clearwater Threshers
- Tri-City Dust Devils
- Hartford Yard Goats
- the New York Yankees in the MLB Postseason
October 5, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
Acetaminophen crystals viewed by polarized microscopy. #tylenol #science
September 23, 2025 at 3:12 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
Does your panel have candy? Liz and Jonn's panel has candy. Emerging scholars. 204. #csc2025 #chemsky #now
June 17, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
What happens to science under autocracy? The rise of the National Socialist Party in 1930s Germany provides an (admittedly extreme) example. Prior to the early 1930s, scientists at German institutions won a third of Nobels. 10 years later, that number was 5%, and has never recovered.
May 16, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
I join researchers from Coast to Coast to Coast to demonstrate and exercise my voting power. In #Elxn45, I will vote for the Member of Parliament who recognises the importance of research to Canada’s success and prioritizes excellence in research. #ResearchersVote #VotonsRecherche #CdnPoli
March 27, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
Family includes everyone! ❤️
November 17, 2024 at 9:40 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
The Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Wilfrid Laurier University invites applications for a Tenure Track faculty position at the Assistant Professor level in Physical Chemistry. Applications will be accepted until March 28th, 2025. #chemjobs
careers.wlu.ca/job/Waterloo...
Assistant Professor - Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry
Assistant Professor - Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry
careers.wlu.ca
February 24, 2025 at 12:09 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
Diversity is our greatest asset, even if the government disagrees… They not like us! POC in STEM are here to stay.

They tried to rig the game but you can’t fake influence!
Mustard on the [Be][At] bro.

Happy Black History Month!
February 21, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Last winter, the humidity in my office was below the detection limit of my hygrometer (and dryer than the Sahara that day)! Bought a humidifier ASAP
just normal winter prairie scientist things
February 2, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Reposted by Marc MacKinnon
Hind was such an energetic researcher and leader, it's hard to imagine she is gone. This is a nice summary of some of her contributions to EDI, in her own words pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
Hey #ChemSky, I learned this morning that Hind Al-Abadleh passed away a few days ago after a brief illness. She was such a force of nature, with great research and so much important involvement in the (especially Canadian) chemistry community. She will be greatly missed.
January 13, 2025 at 6:56 PM