By coupling experimental and computational techniques, such as X-ray powder diffraction, X-ray absorprion spectroscopy and quantum simulations of bulk crystals, we access the structure of inorganic materials (oxides and sulfides) at various length scales.
Exploiting advanced synchrotron X-ray sources, we investigate how the local coordination of transition metals and the presence of defects determines selected intensive and measurable properties at the macroscale. In particular, we deal with
- nanostructured TiO2-based photocatalysts for environmental remediation;
- structure-property relationships in metal-organic frameworks with nonlinear optical response for theranostic applications;
- correlations among structure and optical properties in ferroelectric Ta/Nb perovskite materials for applications in advanced optics;
- magnetoresistant materials;
- phase transition in perovskite ionic conductors.
Relevant publications
Nanoscale, 2024, Advance Article. DOI: 10.1039/D4NR01556H
Daniela Meroni, Carolina Cionti, Lucia Silvestrini, Noga Gal, Marco Cazzaniga, Michele Ceotto, Giacomi Buccella, Leonardo Lo Presti*, Giuseppe Cappelletti. Oxygen Vacancies in the Spotlight: On the Engineering of Intrinsic Defects in Highly Defective TiO2 Photocatalysts. Journal of Photochemistry & Photobiology A:Chemistry 2023, 444,114916. DOI: 10.1016/j.jphotochem.2023.114916
Ilenia Viola*, Fabio Matteocci, Luisa De Marco*, Leonardo Lo Presti, Silvia Rizzato, Simona Sennato, Alessandra Zizzari, Valentina Arima, Antonio De Santis, Chiara Rovelli, Silvio Morganti, Matthias Auf der Maur, Marianna Testa*. Microfluidic‐Assisted Growth of Perovskite Single Crystals for Photodetectors. Adv. Mater. Technol. 2023, 8, 2300023. DOI: 10.1002/admt.202300023
Domenica Marabello*, Paola Antoniotti, Paola Benzi, Fabio Beccari, Carlo Canepa, Elena Cariati, Alma Cioci and Leonardo Lo Presti. Crystal structure or chemical composition of salt–sugar-based metal–organic frameworks: what are the nonlinear optical properties due to? Acta Crystallogr. Section B, 2021, 77, 506-514, DOI: 10.1107/S2052520621004637
Leonardo Lo Presti, Valentina Pifferi, Giovanni Di Liberto, Giuseppe Cappelletti, Luigi Falciola, Giuseppina Cerrato, Michele Ceotto*. Direct measurement and modeling of spontaneous charge migration across anatase–brookite nanoheterojunctions. J. Mater. Chem. A, 2021,9, 7782-7790 . DOI: 10.1039/D1TA01040A
Leonardo Lo Presti, Jacopo Parravicini*, Raffaella Soave, Gianbattista Parravicini, Michele Mauri, Laura Loconte, Fabrizio Di Mei, Ludovica Falsi, Luca Tartara, Simona Binetti, Aharon J. Agranat, and Eugenio DelRe, Observation of an exotic lattice structure in the transparent KTa1-xNbxO3 perovskite supercrystal. Phys. Rev. B 102, 214110. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.102.214110
Domenica Marabello*, Paola Antoniotti, Paola Benzi, Elena Cariati, Leonardo Lo Presti, Carlo Canepa: Developing new SrI2 and β-D-fructopyranose-based metal–organic frameworks with nonlinear optical properties. Acta Crystallographica Section B75 2019, 210-218, DOI: 10.1107/S2052520619001951
Silvia Rizzato*, Massimo Moret*, Fabio Beghi, Leonardo Lo Presti: Crystallization and structural properties of a family of isotopological 3D-networks: the case of 4,4'-bipy ligand – M2+ triflate system. CrystEngComm, 2018,20, 3784-3795. DOI: 10.1039/C8CE00653A
Giovanni Di Liberto, Valentina Pifferi, Leonardo Lo Presti*, Michele Ceotto*, Luigi Falciola*: Atomistic Explanation for Interlayer Charge Transfer in Metal-Semiconductor Nanocomposites: The Case of Silver and Anatase. Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters 10/2017, 8, 5372-5377, DOI; 10.1021/acs.jpclett.7b02555
Riccardo Destro*, Riccardo Ruffo, Pietro Roversi, Raffaella Soave, Laura Loconte, Leonardo Lo Presti: Anharmonic motions versus dynamic disorder at the Mg ion from the charge densities in pyrope (Mg3Al2Si3O12) crystals at 30 K: Six of one, half a dozen of the other. Acta Crystallographica Section B: Structural Science, 04/2017; 73, 722–736, DOI: 10.1107/S2052520617006102
Daniela Meroni*, Leonardo Lo Presti*, Giovanni Di Liberto, Michele Ceotto, Robert G Acres, Kevin C Prince, Roberto Bellani, Guido Soliveri, Silvia Ardizzone: A Close Look at the Structure of the TiO2-APTES Interface in Hybrid Nanomaterials and Its Degradation Pathway: An Experimental and Theoretical Study. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 01/2017; 121:430-440., DOI:10.1021/acs.jpcc.6b10720
Luca Rimoldi, Claudia Ambrosi, Giovanni Di Liberto, Leonardo Lo Presti*, Michele Ceotto, Cesare Oliva, Daniela Meroni, Serena Cappelli, Giuseppe Cappelletti, Guido Soliveri, Silvia Ardizzone: Impregnation versus Bulk Synthesis: How the Synthetic Route Affects the Photocatalytic Efficiency of Nb/Ta:N Codoped TiO2 Nanomaterials. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 10/2015; 119(42):24104–24115., DOI:10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b06827
Francesca Spadavecchia*, Michele Ceotto, Leonardo Lo Presti, Chiara Aieta, Iolanda Biraghi, Daniela Meroni, Silvia Ardizzone, Giuseppe Cappelletti: Second Generation Nitrogen Doped Titania Nanoparticles: A Comprehensive Electronic and Microstructural Picture. Chinese Journal of Chemistry 03/2015; 46(9):1195–1213., DOI:10.1002/cjoc.201400502
Chiara Marchiori, Giovanni Di Liberto, Guido Soliveri, Laura Loconte, Leonardo Lo Presti*, Daniela Meroni*, Michele Ceotto, Cesare Oliva, Serena Cappelli, Giuseppe Cappelletti, Chiara Aieta, Silvia Ardizzone: Unraveling the Cooperative Mechanism of Visible-Light Absorption in Bulk N,Nb Codoped TiO2 Powders of Nanomaterials. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 09/2014; 118(41):24152–24164., DOI:10.1021/jp507143z
Leonardo Lo Presti*, Michele Ceotto, Francesca Spadavecchia, Giuseppe Cappelletti, Daniela Meroni, Robert G. Acres Silvia Ardizzone: Role of the Nitrogen Source in Determining Structure and Morphology of N‑Doped Nanocrystalline TiO2. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 02/2014; 118(9):4797-4807., DOI:10.1021/jp412394e
Mattia Allieta*, Marco Scavini, Leonardo Lo Presti, Mauro Coduri, Laura Loconte, Serena Cappelli, Cesare Oliva, Paolo Ghigna, Phil Pattison, Valerio Scagnoli: Charge ordering transition in GdBaCo2O5: Evidence of reentrant behavior. Physical Review B 12/2013; 88(21):214104., DOI:10.1103/PhysRevB.88.214104
Francesca Spadavecchia*, Giuseppe Cappelletti, Silvia Ardizzone, Michele Ceotto, Matteo Simone Azzola, Leonardo Lo Presti, Giuseppina Cerrato, Luigi Falciola: Role of Pr on the Semiconductor Properties of Nanotitania. An Experimental and First-Principles Investigation. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 10/2012; 116(43):23083–23093., DOI:10.1021/jp307303n
Michele Ceotto*, Leonardo Lo Presti*, Giuseppe Cappelletti, Daniela Meroni, Francesca Spadavecchia, Roberto Zecca, Matteo Leoni, Paolo Scardi, Claudia L. Bianchi, Silvia Ardizzone: About the nitrogen location in nanocrystalline N-doped TiO 2: Combined DFT and EXAFS approach. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C 01/2012; 116(2):1764-1771., DOI:10.1021/jp2097636
Leonardo Lo Presti*, Mattia Allieta, Marco Scavini, Paolo Ghigna, Laura Loconte, Valerio Scagnoli, Michela Brunelli: Crystal structure and structural phase transitions in the GdBaCo2O5.0 cobaltite. Physical review. B, Condensed matter 09/2011; 84(10)., DOI:10.1103/PhysRevB.84.104107
Luca Beverina*, Alessandro Sanguineti, Glauco Battagliarin, Riccardo Ruffo, Dominique Roberto, Stefania Righetto, Raffaella Soave, Leonardo Lo Presti, Renato Ugo, Giorgio A Pagani*: UV absorbing zwitterionic pyridinium-tetrazolate: Exceptional transparency/optical nonlinearity trade-off. Chemical Communications 01/2011; 47(1):292-4., DOI:10.1039/c0cc01652g
Leonardo Lo Presti*, Raffaella Soave, Mariangela Longhi, Emanuele Ortoleva: Conformational polymorphism in a Schiff-base macrocyclic organic ligand: An experimental and theoretical study. Acta crystallographica. Section B, Structural science 10/2010; 66(Pt 5):527-43., DOI:10.1107/S0108768110029514
Leonardo Lo Presti*, Riccardo Destro: Experimental and theoretical charge density distribution of the colossal magnetoresistive transition metal sulfide FeCr2S4. The Journal of Chemical Physics 02/2008; 128(4):044710., DOI:10.1063/1.2822160
Leonardo Lo Presti, Donatella Invernizzi, Raffaella Soave, Riccardo Destro*: Looking for structural phase transitions in the colossal magnetoresistive thiospinel FeCr2S4 by a multi-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction study. Chemical Physics Letters 11/2005; 416(1-3):28-32., DOI:10.1016/j.cplett.2005.09.037
