Low-Energy Optical Spectroscopy as a Probe of Structure-Property Relations in Organic Solids

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Non-Technical AbstractThis work will help develop a better and more detailed understanding of the basic physics and chemistry of novel organic materials. Such materials include superconductors and carbon cage and tube structures, which are at the cutting edge of work in nanomaterials. Spectroscopic techniques will be used to study these systems in the presence of strong magnetic fields, variable temperature, and chemical modification, with the goal of elucidating how the physical properties of the materials relate to their chemical composition and structure. Developing this type of detailed understanding is critical to being able to engineer new materials with specifically tailored properties for use in electronics and many other areas. This work cuts across the boundaries of chemistry, physics, materials science, and engineering, and involves collaborations with many national and international scientists. The scientific breadth provides the students and postdoctoral research associates participating in this work with a unique and important educational experience as they carry out the research, publish it, and present it at a variety of national and international meetings, preparing them for future employment in industry, government laboratories, and academics. Research results will also be incorporated into the graduate and undergraduate classrooms at various levels, as examples and case studies that directly connect the basic concepts the students are studying with developments in advanced materials. The Chemistry Division and the Division of Materials Research are supporting this project.Technical AbstractThe proposed work is part of a multifaceted but strongly integrated program in the spectroscopy of complex organic materials. It concentrates on understanding physical and chemical tuning of local structure and functionality in model organic materials including layered superconductors, small carbon cage and endohedral fullerenes, molecular ladder-like compounds, and carbon nanotubes. The goal is to connect the rich features in the low-energy spectral response with local and spatial aspects of charge, magnetism, and structure. By studying these effects in a variety of model materials, a better understanding of bulk properties such as superconductivity, negative thermal expansion, and doping-induced metal-insulator transitions as well as microscopic aspects of symmetry-breaking, charge-ordering, and guest-host interactions in complex organic solids will emerge. The field of advanced organic solids cuts across the disciplinary boundaries of chemistry, physics, materials science, and engineering. At the same time, the proposed work will advance the education of young people in the area of materials spectroscopy. Such human resource development is one of the most important goals of this work.