Polyphilic Fluoroalkyl-Substituted Polythiophenes

Georgia Tech Research Corporation, Atlanta GA

Investigators

Abstract

The polyphilicity of new fluoroalkyl-substituted polythiophenes provides the means to prepare highly ordered and oriented conjugated organic materials. The combination of tunable electronic properties, solubility, and supramolecular assembly of semifluorinated materials allows us to address a number of criteria in the design of conjugated polymers for use in electronic devices. The study will establish structure-property relationships for the formation of assemblies in solution, in liquid crystalline mesophases and in the solid stage. In addition, the study of polyphilic polymers will provide insight into development of methods to attain control of the orientation of molecules at surfaces, a subject which is poorly understood at present but one of great importance in the development of conjugated organic materials for use in devices. We will also explore the nature of the polyanions (i.e., delocalization, mobility) formed by reduction of conjugated polymers substituted by electron withdrawing perfluoroalkyl groups, and the potential for n-channel conduction. Finally, the solubility of fluoroalkyl-substituted conjugated polymers in supercritical carbon dioxide will be investigated to allow for processing of these technologically important materials in a "green solvent". The proposed study will lead to new design motifs which may be applied to other conjugated polymers, a field of intense interest in the development of new electronic, optical and electrooptical technologies. It provides new materials for incorporation into prototypical devices, and will provide new physical insights into the development of ordered and oriented materials. The study provides exceptional opportunities for training of graduate and undergraduate students in a variety of techniques and fields: organic synthesis and characterization, polymerization chemistry, characterization of materials, and device fabrication of characterization. These students will benefit from outstanding facilities and the interdisciplinary environment present on the Georgia Tech campus, as well as the proposed collaboration with Dr. Z. Bao. Both Georgia Tech and the PI's group have a strong record of training graduates from underrepresented minority groups. Researchers will be recruited to this project from the diverse student population present in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Georgia Tech.