Metal Complexes of Donor-Bridge Acceptor Biradical Ligands: Testing Models for Electron Transport

在化学系化学结构、动力学机制B项目资助的这一项目中，大卫A.北卡罗来纳州州立大学化学系的舒尔茨正在研究分子结构与其在分子电子器件中传输电子的能力之间的详细关系。 这项研究的目标是在分子的形状/结构与其在电路中传输电子的能力之间建立清晰的联系。 这些结果可能在下一代分子电子学和“自旋电子学”（基于电子自旋的电子学）中得到应用。 该项目需要详细研究分子合成，结构测定，光谱学，理论，非常适合科学家的教育。 舒尔茨小组在培训科学家（包括本科生和来自代表性不足群体的科学家）方面拥有丰富的经验，这些科学家将继续在学术界，政府实验室，工业界和企业家中工作。 外联活动包括接待和培训来自Shaw大学的本科生暑期研究人员，Shaw大学是当地一所历史悠久的黑人大学。 电子给体-受体相互作用在分子水平上控制电子转移和传输。 它们是生物和人工电子转移和光合作用、太阳能转换和分子电子学/自旋电子学（基于电子自旋的电子学）中至关重要的基础元素。 本研究继续致力于阐明电子耦合在供体桥受体系统中，其中供体片段是一个金属-半醌和受体是一个硝基氮氧自由基，和两者之间的磁性电子自旋-自旋交换耦合是成正比的供体-受体电子耦合的平方。 重点是阐明影响分子电流整流的因素，以及可能用作分子电流整流器中隧道结的分子设计元素（例如，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标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

In this project funded by the Chemical Structure, Dynamic & Mechanism B Program of the Chemistry Division, Professor David A. Shultz of the Department of Chemistry at North Carolina State University is studying detailed relationships between a molecule's structure and its capacity to transport electrons in molecule-based electronic devices. The goal of this research is to develop lucid connections between a molecule's shape/structure and its ability to transport electrons in an electrical circuit. The results could have application in the next generation of molecular electronics and "spintronics" (electron spin-based electronics). The project requires detailed studies of molecular synthesis, structure determination, spectroscopy, theory, and is well-suited to the education of scientists. The Shultz group has extensive experience in training scientists (including undergraduates and those from underrepresented groups) who go on to careers in academia, government laboratories, industry, and entrepreneurship. Outreach activities include hosting and training undergraduate summer researchers from Shaw University, a local Historically Black University. Electron donor-acceptor interactions control electron transfer and transport at the molecular level. They are crucial, foundational elements in biological and artificial electron transfer and photosynthesis, solar energy conversion and molecular electronics/spintronics (electron spin-based electronics). The research continues the efforts toward an elucidation of electronic coupling in Donor-Bridge-Acceptor systems in which the donor fragment is a metal-semiquinone and the acceptor is a nitronylnitroxide radical, and the magnetic electron spin-spin exchange coupling between the two is directly proportional to the square of the Donor-Acceptor electronic coupling. The focus is on elucidating factors affecting molecular current rectification, and molecular design elements that might serve as tunnel junctions in molecular current rectifiers (e.g., cross-conjugation and non-alternate hydrocarbons).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.