Professor Bonn has done groundbreaking work in the development and application of surface-specific spectroscopic techniques. For example, he co-developed a very special non-linear spectroscopic technique called surface sum-frequency generation (SFG), which can detect molecular vibrations on a surface with a specificity of a few molecular layers. Prof. Bonn has applied this technique to a number of very important problems, thereby unequivocally demonstrating its importance. Recently, he has also developed a number of new variants of the technique that are currently being emulated worldwide.
Among other things, he has investigated the interaction between the electrons of the metal and CO molecules adsorbed on it. He has also determined the speed and mechanism of the movement of CO molecules across the metal surface. Furthermore, he has conducted extensive research into the structure and dynamics of water-lipid surfaces, which is extremely relevant for a better understanding of biochemical processes in and on membranes.
He has investigated the phase behavior of lipid layers, determined the influence of Ca ions on them, and also found that lipid layers can contain so-called hidden water molecules. He also recently discovered that DNA can bind very selectively to cationic lipid layers. Finally, he has developed new variants of the SFG technique, which can be used for time-resolved and two-dimensional measurements. This latter technique can be used to measure the distance, relative orientation, and energy transfer of molecular surfaces and is therefore very promising for studying the structure and chemistry of those molecular surfaces.
Based on the techniques he has developed and the results he has achieved with them, he can already be considered one of the world's leading experts in his field. This is evident from his impressive list of publications, numbering around 130, including publications in Science, Angewandte Chemie, Physical Review Letters, and the Journal of the American Chemical Society. His international visibility is evident from the fact that he is a visiting professor at the RIKEN institute in Tokyo, that he has been elected a member of the Young Academy of the KNAW, and that he received a VICI grant from NWO in 2007. He has also managed to secure a large number of grants in recent years.
Professor Bonn is exceptionally friendly and a pleasant communicator. He knows how to motivate people and involve them in his research. This applies in particular to his students and PhD candidates, but also to many researchers within collaborations with various other excellent groups around the world, which in turn results in the aforementioned publications. In addition, he is a gifted speaker, giving appealing and clear lectures, which is one of the reasons why he is frequently asked to speak at international conferences.
The Golden KNCV Medal is awarded each year to a young, promising chemist who, based on his or her achievements, can be expected to play an important role in chemistry in the future, whether in academia, industry, or elsewhere. Professor Bonn has proven himself to be an exceptional scientist who, in his relatively short career, has done groundbreaking work in the field of surface chemistry and in the development of new techniques for studying those surfaces. I therefore have every confidence in saying that we can expect great things from him in the future and that he is a worthy winner of the 2009 KNCV Gold Medal.
