Functional Architectures for Electron Transfer in Solution and on Electrodes

布朗大学化学系的Matthew B. Zimmt教授，因其在溶液和电极中电子转移的功能结构研究而受到有机和大分子化学项目的支持。分子支架将电子供体和电子受体保持在固定的距离和方向上，而不提供明显的电子耦合。通过将感兴趣的材料附着在支架上，直接连接供体和受体，功能将被引入到这个“测试桥”中。这些分子“测试元素”提供的供体/受体耦合将通过测量和分析光诱导电子转移速率常数来确定。各种测试元素，代表在生物和技术电子转移系统中发现的结构，将被检查。通过设计、合成和分析与电极表面特异性结合的分子，也将探索电极表面类似功能的介绍。电子转移事件发生在化学和生物学以及技术应用的许多重要过程中。除了普遍存在之外，电子转移反应因其独特的结构、热力学和介质依赖性而引起了人们的基本兴趣。介于电子供体和电子受体之间的材料的性质对电子转移事件的动力学有相当大的影响。中间材料的核和电子结构决定了传递事件的性质，传递事件可能涉及跳到材料的束缚态（传导）或穿过材料的虚态隧穿。布朗大学化学系的Matthew B. Zimmt教授在有机和大分子化学项目的支持下，通过设计结构易受特定外部刺激影响的材料，正在探索合理控制电子转移过程的性质和动力学的可能性。

Professor Matthew B. Zimmt, of the Department of Chemistry at Brown University, is supported by the Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program for his studies of functional architectures for electron transfer in solution and at electrodes. A molecular scaffold will hold an electron donor and acceptor at a fixed distance and orientation without providing significant electronic coupling. Function will be introduced into this "test bridge" by attaching materials of interest to the scaffold, directly between the donor and acceptor. The donor/acceptor coupling provided by these molecular "test elements" will be determined through measurement and analysis of photoinduced electron transfer rate constants. A variety of test elements, representing structures found in biological and technological electron transfer systems, will be examined. Analogous introduction of function at electrode surfaces will also be explored, through the design, synthesis, and analysis of molecules which bind specifically to electrode surfaces.Electron transfer events occur in many important processes in chemistry and biology as well as in technological applications. Beyond their ubiquity, electron transfer reactions are of fundamental interest for their unique structural, thermodynamic, and medium dependence. The nature of the material lying between the electron donor and the electron acceptor exerts a considerable influence on the dynamics of the electron transfer event. The nuclear and electronic structures of the intervening material determine the nature of the transfer event, which may involve a hop into bound states of the material (conduction) or tunneling through virtual states of the material. By designing materials whose structure is susceptible to specific external stimuli and with the support of the Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program, Professor Matthew B. Zimmt, of the Department of Chemistry at Brown University, is exploring the possibility of rationally controlling the nature and dynamics of electron transfer processes.