Members of the Rivard Group

Post-Doctoral Fellows

Ludwig Zapf

Hello, I'm Ludwig. I grew up in Nürnberg (Germany) and did my Bachelor, Master, and PhD in Chemistry at the Julius-Maximilians-University in Würzburg. During my doctoral research, I mainly worked on the synthesis of anionic borane- and phosphorane- functionalized NHC ligands and related main group and transition metal chemistry. As part of my postdoc here in the Rivard group, I would like to expand my expertise in main group chemistry and materials science. Besides chemistry, I love to enjoy and explore the outdoors, be it hiking, biking, camping, or fishing. I also enjoy cooking and sports such as soccer and ball hockey.

Monojit Batabyal

Hello, I am Monojit Batabyal and I am from India. I obtained my Bachelor and Master degree in Chemistry from University of Burdwan (West Bengal, India) and Banaras Hindu University (Varanasi, India); respectively. Further, I did my PhD in Chemistry at Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Bhopal. During my doctoral research, I mainly worked on synthetic main-group chemistry (Organoselenium & Organotellurium) and their application in synthetic organic transformation and HER catalysis. I joined Professor Hyun-Joong Chung group (Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering) as a postdoctoral fellow and currently I am working on synthesis and study of & Ion Sensing Hydrogel polymers. As part of my postdoctoral research here in the Rivard group (Co-Supervisor), I would like to expand my expertise in synthetic main group chemistry. Apart from chemistry, I love travelling and playing cricket. I also enjoy cooking and biking.

Samuel "Samwise" Baird

I was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1996 but grew up in Chipman, New Brunswick. I completed my undergraduate degree at Mount Allison University in the duck themed town of Sackville, NB in 2018. I moved out to the frozen city of Edmonton due to my interest in fundamental research in inorganic chemistry. In my spare time you can find me convincing people garlic fingers are an East Coast delicacy and that they are not the same thing as garlic bread, sleeping or trying to convince myself that I don't need to drink on school nights.

Graduate Students

Abhishek Muralidharan

Hi, I am Abhishek. Originally from Kerala, India. I completed M.Tech from CUSAT and M.Sc from MG University. My master's thesis program as a visiting student at the University of British Columbia attracted me to stay in Canada for graduate studies. Lucky me, to be a part of Rivard group and happy to work on some interesting inorganic materials. Other than chemistry, I would like to play games, travel around and trying to cook some veggie dishes.

Mamak Bakhtiari

Hi, I am Mamak. I was born and raised in Tehran which is the capital city of Iran. For my undergrad degree, I studied polymer engineering at the University of Tehran and I graduated with the first rank in my class. Then I decided to move to another country to continue my studies so I travelled about 10,000 km to Edmonton and I am so excited to begin my journey in Canada. Luckily, I got the opportunity to join the Rivard group and explore inorganic/polymer chemistry. In my free time, I love to play sports (especially running), go to the theater, and watch movies.

Qiannan (Nancy) Wu

Hi, I am Qiannan (Nancy). I'm from Shandong, China. I completed my Bachelor's degree in Liaocheng University. Now, I'm very happy to join the Rivard group to do some researches about FLP. Outside of chemistry, I like to go to the gym, watch movies, listen to music, travel around and cook some Chinese food.

Ruiqi Li

Hi! My name is Ruiqi, and I'm from Shandong, China. I graduated from the University of Waterloo in the summer of 2024 with the bachelor's degree. It's a great honor and pleasure to be joining the Rivard Group. My research focuses on frustrated Lewis pairs (FLPs), and I'm especially interested in their applications in main-group chemistry. Outside of the lab, I love listening to pop music and enjoy playing guitar and cooking Chinese food in my spare time.

Fei (Phoebe) Huang

Hi! I'm Phoebe from Taipei, Taiwan. I double-majored in Medicinal and Applied Chemistry as well as Fragrance and Cosmetic Science at Kaohsiung Medical University, where I also worked on an undergraduate project involving aluminum-based catalysts for ring-opening polymerization. Now I'm very excited to begin my PhD adventure in the Rivard group. Outside of the lab, I enjoy reading, listening to K-pop, and watching Japanese anime. Since moving to Canada, I've also been learning how to cook and experimenting with new recipes - and I've always wanted to learn skiing, so I'm really looking forward to trying it out here!

Krizel Quiros

My name is Krizel and I was born in the Philippines and raised here in Canada! I did my undergraduate in Mount Royal University where I got my Bachelor's degree in Chemistry. I worked a little on ligand synthesis during my undergrad and I enjoyed it so much I decided to keep pursuing research and joined the Rivard Group. Outside of Chemistry, I enjoy building book nooks, painting, knitting, and hiking with friends and family.

Mauricio Toshio Itoh Tohara

Hello there! My name is Mauricio, and I was born and raised in the grey city of Lima, in Perú. I completed my bachelor degree in chemical engineering at UTEC. I like inorganic and polymer chemistry and I'm excited to work here at the Rivard group! If you don't find me in the lab I might be in the gym, a faraway mountain or trying to cook something weird. I also enjoy giving anime recommendations, playing board games and doing any sort of physical activity.

Undergraduates

Aislinn Cassie-Morfoot

Hi, my name is Aislinn. I grew up in Shilo, Manitoba but I have lived in the Edmonton area since 2016. I am now in my fourth year of the BSc in Chemistry (Accredited) program. Intrigued by Dr. Rivard's advanced inorganic course (CHEM 343), I first joined the Rivard Group as a summer research student in May of 2024. I have now returned as a CHEM 399 student, and am eager to continue my pursuit of new main group heterocycles. Outside of the lab, you may find me glued to my Kobo, exploring new cafes or bookstores with a friend, or spending quality time with my dog.

Danaia Demina

Hi, I'm Danaia! I was born and raised in Yaroslavl, Russia - a beautiful city with over 1000 years of history. In 11th grade, I moved to Canada all by myself and completed high school at Braemar College in Toronto. Now, I'm a second-year Chemistry student at the University of Alberta! I discovered my passion for Chemistry early on and was fortunate to study in a competitive chemistry-focused class in Russia, supported by R-Pharm, the major pharmaceutical company, where I also gained valuable hands-on experience. Today, I'm excited to be part of the Rivard group and begin my journey in research! Outside of academics, I'm a gym girly, love taking pictures with my digital camera, and enjoy going out for matcha with my friends.