LEAPS-MPS: Investigation of Electrochromic Polymer Induced Plasmon Switching on Gold Nanocrystals and its Application for Smart Windows

在这个由NSF化学部资助的项目中，陈刚教授和他在中央佛罗里达大学的学生将进行研究，旨在将电致变色聚合物与等离子体纳米粒子相结合，以建立一种新型的智能窗户，其性能得到改善。智能窗可以选择性地调节太阳光的透过率和反射率，可以显著提高居住的舒适性和安全性，并大大降低建筑和汽车空调的能耗。智能窗的性能主要取决于变色材料，而聚合物电致变色材料因其着色效率高、响应速度快、可加工性好而具有巨大的商业价值。然而，电致变色聚合物将在高施加的电化学电势下劣化。这种劣化会影响其长期循环性能，降低其颜色对比度，从而阻碍了聚合物电致变色材料的商业化。陈教授和他的学生将通过开发由等离子体纳米粒子和电致变色聚合物组成的混合材料来应对这一挑战，这些材料可用于制造具有改进的颜色切换特性的智能窗设备。该项目旨在为新一代人展示智能材料研究，使其在未来的科学创新中发挥主导作用。陈教授计划让研究生和本科生，特别是在STEM领域代表性不足的少数民族学生，以及高中生参与该项目，以扩大研究和参与型外展活动的整合。包括金、银和铜的等离子体纳米颗粒在其等离子体波长处具有强的光吸收和散射，其可以从可见光到近红外进行合成调谐。等离子体性质强烈依赖于它们的介电环境，并且此后可以容易地通过电致变色聚合物的漂白态和着色态之间的转变所带来的介电变化而改变。等离子体纳米粒子的引入有望大大提高电致变色聚合物在不同状态下的颜色对比度，从而避免其可能的电化学劣化。本研究将进一步加深我们对电致变色聚合物诱导的等离子体激元纳米粒子的等离子体激元开关行为的理解。由等离子体纳米颗粒/电致变色聚合物混合纳米结构制造的智能窗装置预期具有改进的颜色切换特性。从这项研究中获得的知识也将有助于设计许多其他基于等离子体的光学设备，用于控制和引导光，用于信息显示器，防伪油墨和癌症治疗的光热系统等广泛领域。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

In this project, funded by the Chemistry Division at NSF, Professor Gang Chen and his students at the University of Central Florida will perform studies that aim to integrate electrochromic polymer with plasmonic nanoparticles to build a new type of smart windows with improved performance. Smart windows, whose transmittance/reflection of sunlight can be selectively adjusted, can dramatically improve the comfortability and security of living, and drastically reduce the energy consumptions of air conditioning in buildings and automobile vehicles. The performance of smart windows mainly depends on chromic materials, and polymer electrochromic materials are of great commercial value because of their high coloration efficiency, fast response speed, and high processability. However, electrochromic polymers will deteriorate under high applied electrochemical potentials. The deterioration will affect their long-term cyclability and lower their color contrast, which prevents the commercialization of the polymer electrochromic materials. Professor Chen and his students will tackle this challenge by developing hybrid materials consisting of plasmonic nanoparticle and electrochromic polymer that can be used to fabricate smart-window devices with improved color-switching characteristics. This project intends to expose smart materials research for a new generation so that they will take a leading role in future scientific innovation. Prof. Chen plans to involve graduate and undergraduate students, especially underrepresented minority students in STEM fields, as well as high school students in the project to broaden the integration of research and participation-oriented outreach activities. Plasmonic nanoparticles, including gold, silver, and copper, have strong light absorption and scattering at their plasmon wavelengths, which can be synthetically tuned from visible to near infrared. The plasmonic properties are strongly dependent on their dielectric environments and thereafter can be easily varied by the dielectric change brought by the transition between bleached and colored states of electrochromic polymer. The introduction of plasmonic nanoparticles is expected to largely improve the color contrast of electrochromic polymer under different states and therefore avoid its possible electrochemical deterioration. This study will further our understanding on electrochromic polymer-induced plasmonic switching behaviors of plasmonic nanoparticles. Smart-window devices fabricated from plasmonic nanoparticles/electrochromic polymer hybrid nanostructures are expected to have improved color-switching characteristics. The knowledge gained from this study will also be useful for designing many other plasmon-based optical devices for controlling and directing light for a wide range of areas such as information displays, anti-counterfeiting inks, and photothermal systems for cancer therapy.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.