We look forward to seeing you on September 18, 2026, starting at 1:00 PM, at the lecture “Non-planar Porphyrin Analogues: Structure, Chirality and Function in Subporphyrinoids,” presented by Tomas Torres, at the Rectorate, the Moisil amphitheater.
Abstract: Over the past few decades, subporphyrinoids have emerged as a striking family of aromatic yet intrinsically non-planar macrocycles, whose three-dimensional architectures—and, in many cases, substitution-induced chirality—continue to inspire new chemical concepts and applications. In this presentation, we will showcase recent progress in the design, synthesis, and functional elaboration of these tripyrrole- and trisoindole-based porphyrin analogues, with particular emphasis on how fine structural tuning translates into unique electronic and optical behaviors.
We will discuss emerging strategies that enable precise control over their molecular architecture, as well as new approaches to post-functionalization that expand their chemical diversity and enhance their suitability for advanced applications. Special attention will be given to their supramolecular organization and to the way these contracted porphyrinoids can be integrated into complex, multicomponent assemblies with tailored properties.
By highlighting the most recent breakthroughs and our own contributions to this rapidly evolving field, this talk aims to illustrate the exceptional versatility and compelling physicochemical features of subporphyrinoids, and to outline their growing potential in areas such as optoelectronics, catalysis, and biomedical technologies.
Tomás Torres holds a Ph.D. in Chemistry (UAM, 1978, Prof. Fariña). He conducted postdoctoral stay at the Max-Planck Institute for Biochemistry in Martinsried, Munich (1978-1980, Prof. Schäfer) as a Max-Planck fellow, and at the Institute of Organic Chemistry, CSIC, Madrid (1980-1981). He worked at Abelló, S.A./Merck, Sharp and Dohme (1981-85) in Madrid. In 1985, he became an Associate Professor, and from 2000 to 2022, he was a Full Professor of Chemistry and director of the Institute of Advanced Research in Chemical Sciences at UAM (2016-2022). Currently, he is an Emeritus Professor at UAM and a Senior Scientist at IMDEA-Nanoscience.He has been working in areas ranging from new molecular materials for energy and nanomedicine and currently leads a team of 20 people. Torres has 670 publications (36.000 citations) and 49 patents, with an H-index (WoS) of 100 (107 (Google Scholar), (Orcid ID: 0000-0001-9335-6935). He has supervised 67 PhD Thesis, delivered 425 lectures, and participated as PI in more than 55 projects. Torres ranks 5th among the most cited Spanish chemists in the last 10 years.He received the Gold Medal of the Royal Spanish Society of Chemistry (2013), the Linstead Career Award from the Society of Porphyrins and Phthalocyanines (2016), and the Miguel Catalán Award from the Community of Madrid (2017). He was awarded the Elhuyar-Goldschmid Prize by the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker, Germany (2018). He is a Member of the European Academy of Sciences (EURASC) (2017). Torres has been awarded honorary doctorates by Ivanovo University, Russia, in 2009, and Miguel Hernández University of Elche, Spain, in 2016. Recently, in 2023, he received the Humboldt Research Award from the German Research Foundation. He has received the most prestigious award in Chemistry in Spain, namely the ‘Enrique Moles’ National Research Prize in the field of Chemical Science and Technology granted by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities of Spain, in 2024. Recently he has been elected “Foreign Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 2025.