Postdoctoral Fellow
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab - 2022
Alistair Sterling
Assistant Professor – Chemistry & Biochemistry
Professional Preparation
Affiliate Postdoctoral Scholar
University of California, Berkeley - 2022
University of California, Berkeley - 2022
EPSRC Doctoral Prize Fellowship
University of Oxford - 2021
University of Oxford - 2021
DPhil - Organic Chemistry
University of Oxford - 2021
University of Oxford - 2021
MChem - Chemistry
University of Oxford - 2017
University of Oxford - 2017
Research Areas
The Sterling Lab combines computational modelling, theoretical physical organic chemistry and electronic structure theory to advance our understanding of chemical reactivity. Reactivity fundamentally underpins advances in chemistry, biochemistry, materials science, and pharmaceutical research, and we aim to develop new concepts and computational tools to promote innovation in each of these areas. In particular, we work closely with synthetic chemists to probe reaction mechanisms, focusing on catalysis, molecular editing, and polymer upcycling. Members of the Sterling Lab will learn a variety of skills that include reaction mechanism interrogation, physical organic chemistry, coding and data analysis, and scientific communication. We also encourage outreach and community engagement, and welcome members of the public to get in touch with us to find out more about what we do.Publications
ChemRefine: An open-source automated and interoperable platform for machine learning and quantum chemistry simulations 2025 - Other
Mechanistic Studies of Oxidative Degradation in Diamine-Appended Metal–Organic Frameworks Exhibiting Cooperative CO2 Capture 2025 - Other
Mechanistic Insights into the Origins of Selectivity in a Cu-Catalyzed C–H Amidation Reaction 2024 - Journal Article
Redox Reorganization: Aluminium Promoted 1,5‐Hydride Shifts Allow the Controlled Synthesis of Multisubstituted Cyclohexenes 2023 - Journal Article
Awards
EPSRC Doctoral Prize Award - EPSRC [2021]
Global Young Scientists Summit - NRF Singapore [2021]
Young Modellers' Forum Best Talk Prize - Molecular Graphics & Modelling Society [2019]
Oxford Radcliffe Graduate Scholarship - University College, Oxford [2017]
Bannister Thesis Prize - University of Oxford [2017]
Glaxo-Smith-Kline Thesis Prize - University of Oxford [2017]