Design, Synthesis and Investigation of New Nano-Dimensional Compounds

Combination of conjugated polymers and Polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) units under the same roof was taken place recently. In very few numbers of studies in the literature, it was reported that POSS units gave thermal, mechanical, optical and electrochemical stability to the condujugated polymers. In this study, in order to overcome the problems faced by the industrial field of conjugated polymers (insolubility, thermal, mechanical, optical and electrochemical instability, etc.) the inorganic (POSS) and organic (thiophene) units will be melted in the same pot for producing new POSS based polymeric materials. While the most important reason for using POSS as inorganic segment in the hybrid compound that will be synthesized is not only being nanosized but also the ability to give thermal and electrochemical stability and make the polymer soluble, 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene and 3,4-propylenedioxythiophene, which are easily and linearly polymerized and provide to obtain electroactive polymers, will be used as organic segments. In the first stage of the project, our aim is primarily to sythesize and analyze the compounds whose structures were designed and specified and the sythetic pathways were determined. In the next step, necessary conditions to obtain electroactive polymers (homopolymer and copolymer) will be determined by investigating the electochemical and optical properties of compunds. With the realization of the project, it will be a milestone progress towards polymerization and applications (hydrophobic surfaces, electrochromic devices and polymeric light emitting diodes) of these compounds. The results of the study have the ability to be “know-how” and “patent”. Also, these results will be a data source for the future projects that can be pursued with “public” and “private” sectors. Besides, the subject of the project will be a part of a doctoral thesis, with the originality of the scope of the project and the outcomes have potential to contribute the researcher identity of Atilim University. Besides there is possibility for outcomes to become a patent, they have strong possibility to be published in prestigious journals and presented in conferences.