CAREER: Understanding the Role of Structure on Ionic/Electronic Properties in Polymeric Mixed Conductors

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Nontechnical description: Plastics that conduct charged particles- electrons and ions- are critical for a broad range of applications including biomedical devices for health monitoring and treatment, realization of compact batteries for energy storage, and development of new computers inspired by the brain. Of particular interest are applications in biology, where these soft conducting materials can be used to detect signals from body organs or stimulate living cells. For example, such materials show promise in controlling prosthetic limbs for amputees, and may also help manage epilepsy and Parkinson's disease. This project seeks to study how the design of several soft conducting materials influences the flow of electrons and ions, by specifically aiming to understand how each material rearranges itself when interacting with its surroundings. The outcome of this research intends to enable the design of more efficient and sensitive materials for biomedical devices. The integrated educational objectives are to develop a program for graduate students to improve their science communications skills for a broad and diverse audience, to explore the nature of community engagement for teacher/mentor development, and, through these efforts, to stimulate the interest of Chicago-area students in materials science and bioelectronics. These objectives train researchers to be better mentors, helping promote public scientific literacy and engagement with technology.Technical description: Engineering polymeric materials to support mixed conduction presents a number of challenges stemming from their sensitivity to intra- and inter-molecular interactions needed for efficient electronic and ionic transport/injection. Conducting polymer systems have shown promise as mixed conductors for a range of applications, including bioelectronics; their success has been attributed to effective electrochemical properties owing to bulk ion penetration. Missing, however, is a fundamental understanding of ionic transport, the tradeoffs it imposes on electronic processes, and thus, the design rules critical to achieving high performance in mixed polymeric conductors. This project addresses these needs by tracking microstructure and morphology of both current high-performance polymers and new materials as they are influenced by device relevant conditions. The research employs operando X-ray studies and UV-visible spectroscopy on electrochemical devices to address the interplay amongst structure, processing, and ionic/electronic transport. The research component of this project aims to inform the development of effective signal transducing devices for in vitro and in vivo diagnostics and therapeutics, thus contributing benefits to society by improving societal health outcomes and speeding up the materials development cycle. The educational component of this project centers on improving scientific literacy and engagement in science and technology by building infrastructure for teaching researchers to communicate complex findings to a broad audience ranging from peers, to non-specialists and K-12 students. The project develops curricular materials for community-centered engagement activities of varying duration to determine the effect on, and efficacy of, communicator/mentor development.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.