Minasian Lab

The central goal of our research is to control behavior in complex inorganic systems by coupling the development of new conceptual models of bonding and electronic structure to the discovery of novel approaches in inorganic synthesis.

For information about available positions in the Minasian Research Lab, email sgminasian@lbl.gov or call +1 510-486-5352

Recent Publications

Berkelium–Carbon Bonding in a Tetravalent Berkelocene

Dominic R. Russo†, Alyssa N. Gaiser†, Amy N. Price†, Dumitru-Claudiu Sergentu†, Jennifer N. Wacker, Nicholas Katzer, Appie Peterson, Jacob A. Branson, Xiaojuan Yu, Sheridon N. Kelly, Erik T. Ouellette, John Arnold, Jeffrey R. Long, Wayne W. Lukens, Simon J. Teat, Rebecca J. Abergel*, Polly L. Arnold*, Jochen Autschbach*, and Stefan G. Minasian*

Science, 2025, 387, 974-978. DOI: 10.1126/science.adr3346

† These authors contributed equally

→ Featured in Chemistry & Engineering News: “Berkelocene Puts Exotic Berkelium in a Sandwich” [link]

→ Featured in Chemistry World: “Berkelium Snared in Organometallic Trap” [link]

Synthesis and Characterization of Isostructural Annulated Actinocenes

Dominic R. Russo, Jacob A. Branson, Sheridon N. Kelly, Asmita Sen, S. Olivia Gunther, Appie Peterson, Patrick W. Smith, Erik T. Ouellette, Jochen Autschbach* and Stefan G. Minasian* 

Chem. Commun., 2025, 61, 2504–2507. DOI: 10.1039/D4CC06094F

Formation of Fully Stoichiometric, Oxidation-State Pure Neptunium and Plutonium Dioxides from Molecular Precursors

Appie Peterson, Sheridon N. Kelly, Trevor Arino, S. Olivia Gunther, Erik T. Ouellette, Jennifer N. Wacker, Joshua J. Woods, Simon J. Teat, Wayne W. Lukens, John Arnold, Rebecca J. Abergel* and Stefan G. Minasian* 

Inorg. Chem., 2024, 63, 39, 18417–18428. DOI: 10.1021/acs.inorgchem.4c02099

The Counterintuitive Relationship between Orbital Energy, Orbital Overlap, and Bond Covalency in CeF62– and CeCl62–

Jacob A. Branson, Patrick W. Smith, Dumitru-Claudiu Sergentu, Dominic R. Russo, Himanshu Gupta, Corwin H. Booth, John Arnold, Eric J. Schelter, Jochen Autschbach*, and Stefan G. Minasian*

J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2024, 146, 37, 25640–25655. DOI: 10.1021/jacs.4c07459

Formation of Uranium Disulfide from a Uranium Thioamidate Single-Source Precursor

Sheridon N. Kelly, Dominic R. Russo, Erik T. Ouellette, Debashree Roy, Andrew J. Swift, Michael A. Boreen, Patrick W. Smith, Liane M. Moreau*, John Arnold*, and Stefan G. Minasian*

Chem. Sci., 2024, 15, 13325-13332. DOI: 10.1039/D4SC03422h