Redox Properties of Reduced Semiconductor Nanocrystals

大分子，超分子和纳米化学计划支持华盛顿大学的丹尼尔甘末林教授研究还原半导体纳米晶体的氧化还原特性。 化学能、电能和光能的相互转换对许多先进技术至关重要。纳米级半导体在许多这些技术中发挥着核心作用。这项研究正在解决胶体半导体纳米晶体的氧化还原和光氧化还原特性的基本方面，重点是各种形式的能量的相互转换，并产生与各种催化，光电和能量转换技术相关的新材料和新的基础知识。还原态的物理性质、电子结构和氧化还原性质的表征是连接半导体纳米科学、光化学、电化学、光谱学以及能源和信息科学领域的重要桥梁。该项目还为参与者提供先进的跨学科教育和培训，并为他们从事科学、工程和教育职业做好准备。通过本科生参与研究，将该项目的实验和研究概念纳入华盛顿大学本科课程，与本科院校教师密切合作，以及在区域社区学院，高中，本项目旨在探索胶体半导体纳米晶体的氧化还原性质，包括ZnO，In 2 O3，CdSe，CdS，CdTe和PbS，以及相关成分，专注于发展和了解含有过量离域导带电子的溶液相还原纳米晶体。先进的合成，复杂的光谱和分析方法的组合正在应用于开发还原胶体半导体纳米晶体，并了解其电子结构和氧化还原特性。这项研究强调新材料，新的定量方法和新的氧化还原化学的发展。合成，光谱，反应性研究，电子结构研究和定量分析的整合促进了先进材料的发现和开发，并阐明了这些不寻常材料的基本结构/功能关系。该项目为无机，物理和材料化学领域的参与者提供先进的跨学科教育和培训，为他们在科学，工程，技术创新和教育方面的职业生涯做好准备。这些活动通过将研究和教育结合起来，特别是在本科一级，并通过涉及区域社区学院、高中和一般社区的外联活动，产生了更广泛的影响。

The Macromolecular, Supramolecular and Nanochemistry Program supports the efforts of Professor Daniel Gamelin of the University of Washington to study the redox properties of reduced semiconductor nanocrystals. The interconversion of chemical, electrical, and optical energies is critical to many advanced technologies. Nanoscale semiconductors play central roles in many of these technologies. This research is addressing fundamental aspects of the redox and photoredox properties of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals, focusing on interconversion of the various forms of energy and yielding new materials and new fundamental knowledge relevant to a wide variety of catalytic, opto-electronic, and energy-conversion technologies. Characterization of reduced-nanocrystal physical properties, electronic structures, and redox properties is building important bridges connecting fields of semiconductor nanoscience, photochemistry, electrochemistry, spectroscopy, and energy and information sciences. This project is also providing participants with advanced interdisciplinary education and training, and preparing them for careers in science, engineering, and education. Integration of research and education is being emphasized through involvement of undergraduate students in the research, incorporation of experiments and research concepts from this project into the University of Washington undergraduate curriculum, close collaboration with faculty from undergraduate institutions, and outreach activities at regional community colleges, high schools, and community events.This project aims to explore the redox properties of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals including ZnO, In2O3, CdSe, CdS, CdTe and PbS, and related compositions, focusing on the development and understanding of solution-phase reduced nanocrystals containing excess delocalized conduction-band electrons. A combination of advanced syntheses, sophisticated spectroscopies, and analytical methods is being applied to develop reduced colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals and to understand their electronic structures and redox characteristics. This research emphasizes the development of new materials, new quantitative methodologies, and new redox chemistries. The integration of synthesis, spectroscopy, reactivity studies, electronic-structure studies, and quantitative analysis is facilitating the discovery and development of advanced materials, and elucidating fundamental structure/function relationships in these unusual materials. This project is providing advanced interdisciplinary education and training for participants in the areas of inorganic, physical, and materials chemistries, preparing them for careers in science, engineering, technology innovation, and education. These activities have a broader impact through integration of research and education, particularly at the undergraduate level, and through outreach activities involving regional community colleges, high schools, and the general community.