Flexible Bioenabled Chiral Lasing Materials

基于有机和生物材料的柔性激光材料的发展具有显著的优势，可以在可穿戴传感器中有广泛的应用。该项目应用了一种基本的方法，利用纤维素纳米晶体(CNC)继承的偏振特性来创造新的激光材料。研究人员解决的挑战是有机材料的毒性、水溶性和稳定性。为了解决这些障碍，他们将探索不同类别材料的性质。PI提供了很好的证据，证明数控薄膜具有左旋圆二色性，可以通过加入聚合物来增强和修饰，这可以进一步增加薄膜的强度和灵活性。为了制作激光材料，PI计划在电影中加入量子点(QD)。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

There are significant advantages in the development of flexible laser materials based on organic and biological materials, which could have wide-ranging applications including those in wearable sensors. This project applies a fundamental approach to advantage of the inherit polarization properties of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) to create new lasing materials. The challenges investigators address are the toxicity, water solubility and stability of organic materials. To address these barriers, they will explore the properties of a diverse classes of materials.The PI provides good evidence that CNC films have left-handed circular dichroism that can be enhanced and modified by inclusion of polymers, which can further increase the strength and flexibility of the films. To produce lasing materials, the PIs plan to incorporate quantum dots (QDs) into the films.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.