Email address: besselman@chem.wisc.edu
B.S. 2000, UW-Madison (Chemistry)
M.S. 2004, UW-Madison (Educational Psychology)
M.S. 2009, UW-Madison (Chemistry)
Ph.D. 2012, UW-Madison (Chemistry)
Research Description
Rotational Spectroscopy
I am interested in the precise structure determination and millimeter-wave spectroscopy of small oxygen- and nitrogen-containing organic molecules of potential astrochemical relevance. In parntership with Robert J. McMahon and R. Claude Woods, recent work includes the precise structure determination of hyrazoic acid (HN3), pyrimidine (meta-C4H4N2), and pyridazine (ortho-C4H4N2) by combined millimeter-wave and coupled-cluster computational investigation. Additional spectroscopic investigations of carbonyl diazide (OC(N3)2), formyl azide (HCON3), and diketene (C4H4O2) in the ground and excited states have been published.
Curriculum Development
I am interested in the incorporation of computational tools to support student learning in lecture and laboratory courses. With Nicholas J. Hill, I have integrated computational chemistry into the undergraduate organic laboratory curriculum using WebMO. The use of computational tools, in partnership with more traditional spectroscopic techniques, allows students a deeper understanding of their experimental results. I'm further interested in exploring how a focus on molecular and atomic orbitals using WebMO can enhance student learning in my lecture courses.
Awards and Honors
Harvey Spangler Award for Technology Enhanced Instruction, College of Engineering | 2017 |
Early Career Award, College of Letters & Science | 2017 |
Taylor Teaching Award, Department of Chemistry | 2017 |
Selected Publications
Molecular structure determination: Equilibrium structure of pyrimidine (m-C4H4N2) from rotational spectroscopy (r(e)(SE)) and high-level ab initio calculation (r(e)) agree within the uncertainty of experimental measurement. Journal of Chemical Physics. 2020;152. | .
Synthesis and Characterization of Cyanobutadiene Isomers-Molecules of Astrochemical Significance. Journal of Organic Chemistry. 2020;85:5787-5798. | .
Millimeter-wave spectrum of 4-cyanopyridine in its ground state and lowest-energy vibrationally excited states, nu(20) and nu(30). Journal of Molecular Spectroscopy. 2020;369. | .
SN1, E1, and E2 Reactions of tert-Amyl Compounds: Improved Analysis Using Computational Chemistry and ASAP-HSQC NMR Spectroscopy. Journal of Chemical Education. 2020;. | .
S(N)1, E1, and E2 Reactions of tert-Amyl Compounds: Improved Analysis Using Computational Chemistry and ASAP-HSQC NMR Spectroscopy. Journal of Chemical Education. 2020;97:2280-2285. | .