CAREER: Regulating Charge Transport through Pi-Conjugated Electronic Materials

下一代功能有机材料的开发和实现-作为智力努力和商业材料-将需要合成，评估和应用这些看似无关的领域的贡献。 托瓦尔教授在约翰霍普金斯大学发起了一个项目，该项目将提供有机材料化学方面的广泛培训，重点是开发通过有机电子塑料调节电荷传输的新策略。对新分子结构的研究将产生具有更高电导率、更强发光或更大环境稳定性的改进材料。 在这项CAREER奖的支持下，Tovar研究小组将（1）重新研究历史上相关但不寻常的芳香族组分，希望通过共轭聚合物增强电荷传输，以及（2）设计化学可切换的π共轭拓扑结构，这将使固态电子特性实现戏剧性和可逆的变化，伴随着最小的大分子构象变化。通过这些努力，制造和破坏芳香环的概念将成为实现新功能材料性能的重要设计标准。 这项研究的执行将涉及结构复杂的π共轭分子结构的化学合成的连续循环，然后进行详细的光谱和电化学表征。Tovar教授的研究团队成员将获得芳香体系合成有机化学方面的专业知识，以及通常不会向有机化学学生介绍的复杂分析电化学技术。有机会参与多学科研究合作的第一手资料将提供在许多前沿领域的工作流畅性，其中合成化学在推进新科学方面发挥着重要作用。非技术性总结：人们对开发有机聚合物衍生的导电塑料非常感兴趣，因为它是更成熟的无机材料的可行替代品。 有机聚合物更容易加工，使它们能够制成重量轻，面积大，甚至灵活的设备。 这些塑料设备的应用范围从便携式光伏电池、发光显示器和可涂漆电子产品到新的生物相容性医疗材料。 该职业奖将支持旨在了解如何调节这些不寻常的有机塑料的电子特性的研究。 如果合成有机化学领域以外的更大社区不能以某种方式参与，无论是幼儿还是工程学科的专家，这门科学将产生最小的更广泛的影响。 在这个职业奖的赞助下，为确保这种影响所做的努力包括：（1）在附近的公共图书馆为K-5儿童发起一个涉及动手化学经验的项目，（2）组织化学系本科生与本地高中生之间的交流，以鼓励他们学习大学水平的化学;以及（3）参与在学术机构和联邦机构建立一个在有机材料科学和纳米技术方面有共同兴趣的科学家地方网络。

TECHNICAL SUMMARY:The development and realization of the next generation of functional organic materials - as intellectual endeavors and as materials of commerce - will require contributions from the seemingly unrelated areas of synthesis, evaluation and application. Professor Tovar has initiated a program at Johns Hopkins University that will provide broad training in organic materials chemistry with an emphasis on the development of new strategies to regulate charge transport through organic electronic plastics. Investigation of new molecular architectures will yield improved materials with higher electrical conductivities, stronger luminescence or greater environmental stabilities. With the support of this CAREER award, the Tovar research group will (1) re-examine historically relevant yet unusual aromatic components with the desire to enhance charge transport through conjugated polymers and (2) design chemically-switchable pi-conjugated topologies that will enable the realization of dramatic and reversible changes in solid-state electronic properties accompanied by minimal macromolecular conformational changes. Throughout these efforts, the concept of making and breaking aromatic circuits will be an important design criterion for realizing new functional materials properties. The execution of this research will involve a continual loop of chemical synthesis of structurally complex pi-conjugated molecular architectures followed by detailed spectroscopic and electrochemical characterization. Members of Prof. Tovar's research team will gain expertise in the synthetic organic chemistry of aromatic systems as well as with sophisticated analytical electrochemical techniques not typically introduced to students of organic chemistry. Opportunities to participate first-hand in multi-disciplinary research collaborations will provide working fluency in many cutting-edge avenues where synthetic chemistry plays a major role to advance new science.NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY:There is significant interest in the development of electrically conductive plastics derived from organic polymers as viable alternatives to more established inorganic materials. Organic polymers are much easier to process, allowing them to be fashioned into lightweight, large area, and even flexible devices. Applications for these plastic devices range from portable photovoltaic cells, light-emitting displays and paintable electronics to new biocompatible medical materials. This CAREER award will support research intended to learn how to regulate the electronic properties of these unusual organic plastics. This science will have minimal broader impact if the greater community outside the sphere of synthetic organic chemistry cannot be engaged in some way, be they young children or experts in engineering disciplines. Efforts to ensure this impact under the auspices of this CAREER award involve (1) initiating a program involving hands-on chemistry experiences for K-5 children at a nearby public library, (2) organizing exchanges between current chemistry undergraduates and local high school students to encourage the study of college-level chemistry and (3) participating in the establishment of a local network of scientists at academic and federal institutions who share common interests in organic-based materials science and nanotechnology.