Dwaine O. Cowan

Dwaine O. Cowan (25 November 1935 – 5 May 2006) was an American chemist. He was a professor of chemistry at Johns Hopkins University. He is best known for his pioneering work in the field of organic conductors.[1][2][3] His other research interests included organometallic chemistry, organic photochemistry,[4] organic chemistry, metallocenes[5] and the synthesis of heterocyclic compounds containing sulfur, selenium, and tellurium.[6]

Dwaine O. Cowan
Born25 November 1935
Fresno, California, U.S.
DiedMay 5, 2006(2006-05-05) (aged 70)
Clovis, California, U.S.
Alma materFresno State College
Stanford University
Known forMolecular Solids
Organometallic Chemistry
Photochemistry
Metallocenes
Scientific career
FieldsChemistry
InstitutionsJohns Hopkins University
Doctoral advisorHarry Stone Mosher
Other academic advisorsGeorge S. Hammond
Doctoral studentsRichard D. McCullough

Education

He received a B.S. in chemistry from Fresno State College in 1958 and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Harry Stone Mosher at Stanford University in 1962.[7]

Research

Cowan was one of the dominant, world-renowned figures in physical organic chemistry during his thirty-year career. He is considered to be the father of "organic conductors and superconductors",[8] a burgeoning area of science and technology that cuts across the disciplines of chemistry, physics and materials science.

Cowan was invited to contribute a special report titled "The Organic Solid State" on the subject of organic conductors to Chemical and Engineering News (July 21, 1986).[9]

Cowan and his students have authored 190 scientific articles, four patents and two monographs.[10] He co-authored a book with Ronald Drisko entitled Elements of Organic Photochemistry (ISBN 978-1-4684-2130-9).[11]

Personal life

He was preceded in death by his wife, LaVon "Bonnie" Adams Cowan; and his parents Oliver and EvaBelle Cowan.

Awards

He received a number of major awards including Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellowship (1968-1970), Guggenheim Fellowship, University of Basel, Switzerland (1970-1971), elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1989) and the Alexander von Humboldt Senior Scientist for the University of Heidelberg, Germany (1992- 1993).[12]

References
  1. Cowan, Dwaine (February 1973). "Electron transfer in a new highly conducting donor-acceptor complex". J. Am. Chem. Soc. 95 (3): 948–949. doi:10.1021/ja00784a066.
  2. Cowan, Dwaine (1990). Advanced Organic Solid State Materials: Volume 173 (MRS Proceedings). New York, New York: Materials Research Society. ISBN 978-1-107-41022-0.
  3. Gubser DU, Fuller WW, Poehler TO, Cowan DO, Lee M, Potember RS, Chiang LY, Bloch AN., Magnetic susceptibility and resistive transitions of superconducting (TMTSF)Cl2O4: Critical magnetic fields, Physical Review B. 1981, 24: 478-480.
  4. Cowan, Dwaine (1976). Elements of organic photochemistry (First ed.). Plenum Press. ISBN 0306308215.
  5. Cowan, Dwaine O.; LeVanda, Carole; Park, Jongsei; Kaufman, Frank (May 2002). "Organic solid state. VIII. Mixed-valence ferrocene chemistry". Accounts of Chemical Research. 6 (1): 1–7. doi:10.1021/ar50061a001.
  6. Klaus Bechgaard, Dwaine O. Cowan and Aaron N. Bloch, Synthesis of the organic conductor tetramethyltetraselenofulvalenium 7,7,8,8-tetracyano-p-quinodimethanide (TMTSF–TCNQ)[4,4′,5,5′-tetramethyl-Δ2,2′-bis-1,3-diselenolium 3,6-bis-(dicyanomethylene)cyclohexadienide], J. Chem. Soc., Chem. Commun., 1974,0, 937-938.
  7. Cowan, Dwaine. "Chemistry Tree - Dwaine O. Cowan Family Tree". Chemistry Tree. The Academic Family Tree. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
  8. "Dwaine O. Cowan (1935–2006): The Father of Organic Conductors and Superconductors". chemeducator.org.
  9. Cowan, Dwaine (July 21, 1986). "The Organic Solid State: Organic materials show interesting and useful electrical, magnetic, and optical properties in the solid state". Chemical and Engineering News. 64 (29): 28–45. doi:10.1021/cen-v064n029.p028.
  10. "Dwaine O. Cowan - Publications". academictree.org.
  11. "Elements of Organic Photochemistry | SpringerLink".
  12. http://chemeducator.org/papers/0014003/14090118gk.pdf
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