T2DCP · Development of Thiophene Based Conjugated Polymers in Two Dimensions

The proceeding inexorable digitalisation of modern economics and society creates a steadily increasing demand on smart devices in the context of the industrial internet and the internet of things. To meet future requirements, organic electronics is a disruptive technology featuring low-cost, robust, lightweight, flexible and affordable devices based on organic small molecules and polymers. In contrast to the boosting development of linear conjugated polymers and their applications in organic electronics, the successive increase of dimensionality by connecting multiple strands towards two-dimensional (2D) conjugated polymers remains largely unexplored. In this project, we will develop unprecedented thiophene-based double- and triple-strand conjugated polymers to 2D conjugated polymers (T2DCPs) for organic electronics with tailorable electronic band gap at the molecular level for superior performance in terms of charge carrier mobility, and defect tolerance enabled by the increased dimensionality. In this respect, we aim to establish versatile but also reliable solution-based synthesis strategies (one-pot solvothermal, two-step metal-templating reaction and interfacial soft-templating route) employing thiophene monomers rendering T2DCPs with entirely C=C/Ar-Ar backbone. We will further establish ground-breaking one-pot synthesis of donor-acceptor type T2DCPs featuring lower band gap and unique charge transport behavior. By employing designed thiophene-based monomers and linkage topologies, we will accomplish optical and energy gap engineering, control of the molecular weight (or crystalline domain size), and conjugation channel densities. The consequence is that we will explore the key functions of this intriguing class of semiconducting polymers. As the key achievements, we expect to establish a novel solution-based chemistry, delineation of reliable structure-property relationships and superior device performance of T2DCPs for organic field effect transistors.