Profile

Senior Lecturer in Organic Chemistry

Office: Room 319, Ingram Building
Telephone: (01227) 823547
Email: S.J.Holder@kent.ac.uk

Functional Materials Group

Biography

I researched for my PhD in organic chemistry at the University of Hull under the supervision of Dr. David Lacey as part of the Liquid Crystal group. After receiving my PhD in 1993 I worked as postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Kent on polysilane syntheses and applications with Prof. Dick Jones. Subsequently I worked with Prof. Roeland Nolte in the Department of Organic Chemistry at the University of Nijmegen on supramolecular chemistry. I became a lecturer in organic chemistry at Kent in 1998.

Research Interests

Simon Holder's predominant research interest is in the synthesis and application of novel polymeric materials. Holder is an internationally recognised expert on the synthesis of polysilanes and he has been engaged in understanding the polymerisation of dichlorodiorganosilanes to improve the yields, allowing for the first time the high yield synthesis of a variety of polysilanes at ambient temperatures. 
A further main area of research interest is the synthesis by controlled polymerisations and application of novel copolymers including:

• Polysilane block copolymers - unique biomaterials applied as thin film templates for controlled CaCO3 mineralisation and cell growth.
• Optimised synthesis of polysiloxane based amphihilic block copolymers.
• Novel stabilisers for the non-aqueous dispersion polymerisation of vinyl monomers in non-polar solvents giving micro- and nano-particles.

Simon Holder is also engaged in the design and development of novel non-invasive polymer based optical sensor systems including: the development of polymer based sensors of local surface pressures and temperatures, and fluorescent labelled polysiloxane elastomers for measurements of mechanical deformation.

Publications

High, LRH; Holder, SJ; Penfold, HV
"Synthesis of star polymers of styrene and alkyl (meth)acrylates from a porphyrin initiator core via ATRP"
MACROMOLECULES, 40: 7157-7165, 2007

Holder SJ, Achilleos M, Jones RG
Increasing molecular weight parameters of a helical polymer through polymerization in a chiral solvent
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY 128 (38): 12418-12419 SEP 27 2006

Popescu DC, van Leeuwen ENM, Rossi NAA, Holder SJ, Jansen JA, Sommerdijk NAJM
Shaping amorphous calcium carbonate films into 2D model substrates for bone cell culture
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION 45 (11): 1762-1767 2006

Popescu DC, Lems R, Rossi NAA, Yeoh CT, Loos J, Holder SJ, Bouten CVC, Sommerdijk NAJM
The patterning and alignment of muscle cells using the selective adhesion of poly(oligoethylene glycol methyl ether methacrylate)-based ABA block copolymers
ADVANCED MATERIALS 17 (19): 2324+ OCT 4 2005

Street G, Illsley D, Holder SJ
Optimization of the synthesis of poly(octadecyl acrylate) by atom transfer radical polymerization and the preparation of all comblike amphiphilic diblock copolymers
JOURNAL OF POLYMER SCIENCE PART A-POLYMER CHEMISTRY 43 (5): 1129-1143 MAR 1 2005

Kurjata J, Chojnowski J, Yeoh CT, Rossi NAA, Holder SJ
Synthesis of poly[dimethylsiloxane-block-oligo (ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate]: an amphiphilic copolymer with a comb-like block
POLYMER 45 (18): 6111-6121 AUG 19 2004

Teaching

• CH309 - Fundamental Chemistry for Chemists and Bioscientists
• CH504 - Organic Chemistry
• CH506 - Chemical Identification Techniques
• Director of Research
• RAE Coordinator