LEAP-HI: Manufacturing of Silicon-based Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Quantum Building Blocks

LEAP-HI：硅基杂化有机-无机量子构件的制造

• 批准号: 2053567
• 负责人: Lorenzo Mangolini
• 金额: $ 200万
• 依托单位: University of California-Riverside
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-08-01 至 2026-07-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2053567&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: LEAP; HI; Manufacturing; Silicon; based

Quantum computing promises to address our growing need for faster and more energy efficient information processing technologies. Today quantum computers rely on materials and structures that need to be both extremely pure and operated at cryogenic temperatures, a limitation referred to as “the tyranny of low temperature”. These constraints put into question the scalability of quantum computers and, in turn, their potential to manage the sheer magnitude of information generated by modern-day society. This Leading Engineering for America's Prosperity, Health, and Infrastructure (LEAP-HI) project will investigate alternative materials and structures that have the potential to store and optically access quantum information at room temperature. The structures are based on small semiconductor (inorganic) nanoparticles integrated with carefully designed organic molecules. The main outcomes of this project will be (a) a set of design guidelines for these hybrid organic-inorganic structures that optimize the optical and electronic coupling between the two components, and (b) the development of strategies for their manufacturing that, while being novel, are also inherently scalable to large production volumes. Achieving these goals will allow establishing the hybrid organic-inorganic structures as the fundamental building block of the next generation of quantum computers. A broad array of activities including outreach to community colleges, internship into the principal investigator’s laboratories and outreach to the public in collaboration with local museums will be integrated into the research plan. These activities will target students at all levels (from grade school to community colleges), with particular attention towards students from underrepresented groups and the goal of encouraging them to pursue advanced degrees in STEM.This project is centered on silicon quantum dots as the inorganic component of the researched structure. This choice is motivated by their advantageous properties in terms of abundance and sustainability, and by the fact that their processing science is still in its infancy, making this field ripe for critical contributions. The project aims at achieving an unprecedented control over the optoelectronic coupling between silicon quantum dots and surrounding organic semiconducting matrices. This will be realized by grafting transmitter organic molecules onto the surface of the silicon particles, therefore tuning the interfacial chemistry and the bi-directional energy transfer between the two system components. Novel gas-phase processing schemes will be developed to produce silicon quantum dots and immediately graft their surfaces with multi-functional organic groups, providing a rapid and scalable approach to the production of the hybrid structures. Ultrafast spectroscopy will be used to elucidate the role played by interfacial chemistry on the functionality of the hybrid organic-inorganic structures. Atomistic modelling will provide theoretical foundation and guidance to this investigation. The investigators are uniquely qualified to undertake this project, as they bring together expertise in the synthesis of silicon quantum dots, the design of organic-inorganic interfaces, the photo-physical characterization of hybrid systems and the ab-initio modelling of interfacial effects.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.

量子计算有望满足我们对更快、更节能的信息处理技术日益增长的需求。如今，量子计算机所依赖的材料和结构需要非常纯净，并在低温下运行，这一限制被称为“低温暴政”。这些限制对量子计算机的可扩展性提出了质疑，反过来，它们管理现代社会产生的庞大信息的潜力也受到了质疑。这个美国繁荣、健康和基础设施的领先工程（LEAP-HI）项目将研究具有在室温下存储和光学访问量子信息潜力的替代材料和结构。这些结构是基于小的半导体（无机）纳米粒子与精心设计的有机分子集成。该项目的主要成果将是：（a）为这些混合有机-无机结构制定一套设计指南，优化两个组件之间的光学和电子耦合;（B）制定制造策略，这些策略虽然新颖，但本质上也可扩展到大批量生产。实现这些目标将允许建立混合有机-无机结构作为下一代量子计算机的基本构建块。一系列广泛的活动，包括与社区学院的联系，到主要研究者的实验室实习，以及与当地博物馆合作向公众宣传，将被纳入研究计划。这些活动将针对各级学生（从小学到社区大学），特别关注代表性不足群体的学生，并鼓励他们攻读STEM高级学位。该项目以硅量子点为中心，作为研究结构的无机成分。这一选择的动机是它们在丰富性和可持续性方面的优势，以及它们的加工科学仍处于起步阶段的事实，使这一领域的关键贡献成熟。该项目旨在实现对硅量子点与周围有机半导体基质之间的光电耦合的前所未有的控制。这将通过将发射器有机分子接枝到硅颗粒的表面上来实现，从而调节两个系统组件之间的界面化学和双向能量转移。将开发新的气相处理方案来生产硅量子点，并立即将其表面与多功能有机基团接枝，为混合结构的生产提供快速和可扩展的方法。超快光谱将被用来阐明所发挥的作用，通过界面化学的功能的混合有机-无机结构。 原子模型将为这一研究提供理论基础和指导。研究人员是唯一有资格承担这个项目，因为他们汇集了专业知识，在合成硅量子点，设计有机-无机界面，混合系统的光物理特性和ab-界面效应的初始建模。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查进行评估，被认为值得支持的搜索.

项目成果

Efficient photon upconversion enabled by strong coupling between silicon quantum dots and anthracene

硅量子点和蒽之间的强耦合实现了高效的光子上转换

• DOI: 10.1038/s41557-023-01225-x
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: Nature Chemistry
• 影响因子: 21.8
• 作者: Wang, Kefu;Cline, R. Peyton;Schwan, Joseph;Strain, Jacob M.;Roberts, Sean T.;Mangolini, Lorenzo;Eaves, Joel D.;Tang, Ming Lee
• 通讯作者: Tang, Ming Lee

Gas-phase grafting for the multifunctional surface modification of silicon quantum dots

硅量子点多功能表面改性的气相接枝

• DOI: 10.1039/d2nr04902c
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: Nanoscale
• 影响因子: 6.7
• 作者: Schwan, Joseph;Wang, Kefu;Tang, Ming Lee;Mangolini, Lorenzo
• 通讯作者: Mangolini, Lorenzo

Efficient Photon Upconversion Enabled by Strong Coupling Between Organic Molecules and Quantum Dots

有机分子与量子点之间的强耦合实现高效光子上转换

• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: arXivorg
• 作者: Kefu Wang