Timo Pekkanen

Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Postdoctoral Fellow
E18-509
Email: ttpekkan@mit.edu

Timo Pekkanen I obtained my chemistry M.S. in 2017 at the University of Helsinki, Finland. After my M.S., I continued at the same university to pursue a doctoral degree in physical chemistry under the supervision of Dr. Raimo Timonen and Dr. Arkke Eskola. I defended my thesis in 2023, with Prof. Franklin Goldsmith being the opponent. In my doctoral work, I investigated the kinetics of reactions between resonance-stabilised hydrocarbon radicals and oxygen molecules. These reactions are relevant both in atmospheric and combustion chemistry. I used laser-photolysis–photoionisation mass spectrometry to conduct rate-coefficient measurements and complemented the experimental work by performing quantum-chemistry calculations and master-equation simulations. The purpose of the computational work was to, in a way, extrapolate the experimental results obtained at relatively low temperatures (200–1000 K) and pressures (0.0003–0.01 bar) to conditions more relevant for practical application (say, engines). Before joining the Green group in August 2024, I did a short postdoc in Budapest under Dr. György Lendvay. There we used used computational tools to investigate reaction dynamics and collisional energy transfer. At MIT, I’ll be performing kinetic measurements in the reaction dynamics laboratory, as well as using a variety of kinetic modelling tools. In my free time, I read and play sports and games.