TEAM
LEADER
Dr Magdalena Grzelak
During her PhD studies, she was awarded a Preludium grant (NCN) and contributed to various projects, including Opus, Sonata, Maestro (NCN), and PBS (NCBiR), collaborating with Prof. Bogdan Marciniec, Prof. Bronisław Marciniak, and Dr. Dawid Frąckowiak.
In January 2021, she started her position as an assistant professor at the Center for Advanced Technologies. Later that year, in October, she joined Marcin Lindner’s team as a postdoctoral researcher, working on the Lider XI project at IOC PAS. For two years, she focused on organic emitters for TADF OLED materials based on curved nanographene fragments.
In the meantime, she secured another grant from the “ID-UB” program, “50×50: 50 grants for 50 young researchers,” awarded by the Rector of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. Currently, Dr. Grzelak continues her academic journey at Adam Mickiewicz University as an assistant professor and is part of Prof. Ireneusz Kownacki’s group.
In 2024, Magdalena starts her independent research project, Sonata (NCN), exploring multichromophoric open-cage silsesquioxanes as quantitative optical anion sensors.
Her research interests encompass organometallic chemistry, catalysis, the synthesis and functionalization of silsesquioxanes and germasilsesquioxanes, as well as π-conjugated organic and organosilicon compounds.
STUDENTS and PhD STUDENTS
Natalia Pietras
Natalia is a fourth-year PhD student at the Doctoral School of Exact Sciences at the Faculty of Chemistry, Adam Mickiewicz University (discipline: chemical sciences). She conducts her doctoral research under the supervision of Prof. Ireneusz Kownacki and Dr Dawid Frąckowiak. Her work focuses primarily on reactions carried out under mechanochemical conditions, that is, without the use of solvents. She is currently involved in the synthesis of d-block metal complexes, and has previously worked on mechanochemical modifications of cage silsesquioxanes – POSS.
She joined the SONATA 19 project to broaden her skills and gain new experience. In her free time, she enjoys reading a good book or immersing herself in tabletop role-playing games, especially in fantasy settings (D&D) or the darker world of Call of Cthulhu.
Barbara Kaczmarek
Basia joined our team in autumn 2025. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Cosmetology from the Poznań University of Medical Science as well as both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Chemistry from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. For the past six years, she has been working in the field of solid-state synthesis (mechanochemistry), applying it in areas such as POSS functionalization and organic synthesis. She led the ID-UB research minigrant “A classic reimagined: mechanochemical Appel reaction in the synthesis of alkyl halides and amines” and completed a two-week research internship under Dr. Frédéric Lamaty at the Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron (IBMM) in Montpellier, France. Currently, she is in the fourth year of her PhD studies at the Doctoral School of Exact Sciences at Adam Mickiewicz University, working under the supervision of Prof. Ireneusz Kownacki with Dr. Dawid Frąckowiak as her assistant supervisor.
Outside the laboratory, Basia enjoys reading, drawing, and playing tabletop RPGs. She loves to spend her free time in the company of her cat, Izma.
MSc Julita Nawrocik
She is a chemist currently pursuing her PhD in the research group of Prof. Ireneusz Kownacki. She joined our team in spring 2025, bringing her motivation, creativity, and precision to ongoing research projects. Her scientific interests focus on the design and synthesis of new perylene diimide derivatives for applications in organic optoelectronic devices.
FORMER MEMBERS
Gabriel Ławiński
Graduate of the Faculty of Chemistry at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, having completed his degree in autumn 2025. A long-time member of the Scientific Association of Chemists, participant in numerous competitions, and an enthusiast of organic synthesis with a strong interest in exploring the mysteries of silicon.
In his free time, he enjoys popularizing chemistry, cycling, exploring the mountains, and learning about lasers.
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