Felix Freire

Felix Freire is a Full Professor in the Organic Chemistry Department at the University of Vigo's Faculty of Science, where he leads the Chiral Materials Group. Previously affiliated with the University of Santiago de Compostela, he was promoted to Full Professor in September 2023 after building an internationally recognized research program in chiral and helical polymers.

His research focuses on dynamic helical polymers and their applications in nanomaterials. Dr. Freire's group investigates how external stimuli can modulate the helical sense of polymers, leading to chiral amplification or helical inversion. This work has significant implications for developing chiral sensors, switches, and responsive materials. The group's expertise spans supramolecular chemistry, polymer science, and nanotechnology, with particular emphasis on chiral nanostructures, polymer-metal complexes, and stimuli-responsive systems.

Analysis of his recent publications reveals a clear trajectory toward increasingly sophisticated chiral architectures, with growing emphasis on biological interfaces, multi-chiral systems, and practical applications in sensing and nanotechnology. His work consistently appears in high-impact journals including Angewandte Chemie, Nature Communications, and JACS.

• José Barluenga Medal from GEQOR (Organic Chemistry Group) of the Spanish Royal Society of Chemistry (2023)
• 59 Becas Leonardo a Investigadores y Creadores Culturales from Fundación BBVA (2020)
• Poster prize at Chirality 2017 (awarded to student Esteban Suárez)
• Second prize for the best thesis in the polymer field in 2017 (awarded to student Sandra Arias)

Dr. Freire has successfully mentored numerous PhD students including María Lago, Elena Rivadulla, Zulema Fernández, Mohammad Alzubi, Rafael Rodríguez, Sandra Arias, and Seila Leiras. His group has secured significant research funding, including a Spanish government grant for 'Chiroptical Dynamic Materials from Dynamic Helical Polymers' in 2016. The Chiral Materials Group maintains active international collaborations with research teams in Japan (University of Kanazawa), France (Sorbonne Université), Germany (Humboldt University), and multiple Spanish institutions.

The group operates from state-of-the-art laboratories at the Center for Research in Biological Chemistry and Molecular Materials at the University of Vigo, where they continue to push boundaries in chiral polymer science with recent work focusing on biological interfaces, multi-metallic systems, and practical sensing applications.