Arne Thomas
Porous Polymers and Organic Frameworks for Catalytic Applications
We develop novel functional materials with high porosity and large surface areas that can be used both directly and as support materials in thermal, electrochemical, and photocatalytic applications. A particular focus of our research lies on covalent organic frameworks (COFs) and microporous polymers. By precisely controlling their structure and properties at the molecular level, we are able to tailor both the chemical and physical characteristics of these materials as well as their catalytic performance. Through this approach, we aim to design highly efficient materials for next-generation catalytic processes. A key objective of our work is to harness solar energy directly, enabling sustainable technologies such as the production of green hydrogen and other renewable energy carriers.
Thomas Webpage ORCID ID Scopus Google Scholar Researcher ID
Key publications:
Rapid in situ encapsulation of [NiFe]-hydrogenase into covalent organic frameworks for robust hydrogen oxidation and evolution, I. E. Khalil, S. Frielingsdorf, P. Das, C. Lorent, C. Teutloff, A. A. Owusu, A. F. Tadjoung Waffo, I. Zebger, O. Lenz, A. Thomas, Chem. Sci. 2026, DOI: 10.1039/d6sc01349j.
Covalent Organic Frameworks on Cu2O Nanocubes as Rapid Proton/Electron Transfer Gates for Efficient NH3 Electrosynthesis from Nitrate in Neutral Media, W. Tahir, Y. Wei, M. Wang, I. E. Khalil, P. Das, T. Wang, C. Cheng, S. Li, A. Thomas J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2026, 148(1), 743–755.
Covalent Organic Frameworks for Photocatalysis, B. Mishra, A. Alam, A. Chakraborty, B. Kumbhakar, S. Ghosh, P. Pachfule, A. Thomas, Adv. Mater. 2025, 37(52), 2413118.
Acridine-Functionalized Covalent Organic Frameworks (COFs) as Photocatalysts for Metallaphotocatalytic C-N Cross Coupling, M. Traxler, S. Gisbertz, P. Pachfule, J. Schmidt, J. Roeser, S. Reischauer, J. Rabeah, B. Pieber, A. Thomas, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2022, 61(21), e202117738.
Constitutional isomerism of the linkages in donor–acceptor covalent organic frameworks and its impact on photocatalysis, J. Yang, S. Ghosh, J. Roeser, A. Acharjya, C. Penschke, Y. Tsutsui, J. Rabeah, T. Wang, S. Y. Djoko Tameu, M.-Y. Ye, J. Grüneberg, S. Li, C. Li, R. Schomäcker, R. van de Krol, S. Seki, P. Saalfrank, A. Thomas, Nat. Commun. 2022, 13, 6317.