Natia Frank

Natia L. Frank is an Associate Professor of Chemistry at the University of Nevada, Reno. Previously, she held positions at the University of Victoria (Canada Research Chair Tier II, 2005-2010), the University of Washington, and Humboldt University (Visiting Professor, 2012). Her research focuses on spin-based organic electronics, quantum information science, and magnetism in materials. She leads the Frank Lab, which investigates functional materials for renewable energy, quantum computing, and biosensors.

Education: B.A. in Chemistry from Bard College (1987), M.Sc. in Inorganic Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (1990), and Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the University of California, San Diego (1996). Postdoctoral training includes CNRS (France) and Caltech (USA).

Research interests include organic photovoltaics, charge-storage materials, and magnetoreception. Her group explores opto-spintronic materials, optically gated quantum systems, and MRI contrast agents. Awards include the Canada Research Chair. She has advised numerous graduate students and postdocs, including Victor Achulonu and Chinedu Osunkwo (inorganic QIS projects).

Teaching includes advanced courses on magnetism, organic synthesis, and materials chemistry. She organizes workshops like the Molecular Magnetism in North America (MAGNA-2023) and contributes to national initiatives in quantum information science.