Formation, characterisation and exploitation of covalently bonded porphyrin nanostructures

Project Description

Pi-conjugated molecules such as porphyrins and fullerenes with tunable electronic properties are appealing building blocks for the construction of functional materials with novel electronic, chemical and photophysical properties. This proposal explores the formation of molecular nanomeshes on solid surfaces using functionalized porphyrins as the basic building blocks. The nanomesh structures are formed through ‘bottom-up’ two-dimensional molecular assembly mediated by either hydrogen or covalent bonding. These nanomeshes will be used to host fullerene molecules thus forming donor-acceptor complexes with applications in novel photovoltaic and sensor devices. These structures will be characterised using scanning probe microscopies, photoelectron spectroscopy and synchrotron based techniques.

Funding Body

Science Foundation Ireland