In a study published in Science, researchers’ findings enable a broad exploration of synthetic 2D polymer structures and properties. This work was a multidisciplinary team effort including DOE’s CNM and APS user facilities at Argonne.
Two-dimensional, single crystal COFs can be produced with controlled size via seeded growth that form colloidal dispersions in solvent and permit transient optical studies.
Scientific Achievement
Two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (COFs) previously have been polycrystalline, insoluble powders that impede characterization. Here, single crystal, 2D COF particles of controlled sizes were synthesized. The materials form stable colloidal solutions that permit optical investigation.
Significance and Impact
High quality, 2D COF materials with controlled size permit optoelectronic study. Size-dependent exciton-exciton annihilation characterization for single crystal domains relates long-range exciton diffusion.
Research Details
- Transient absorption spectroscopy was performed at the Center for Nanoscale Materials for multiple COF sizes.
- Synthesis and structural characterization were performed at Northwestern University and the Advanced Photon Source.
Work was performed in part at the Center for Nanoscale Materials and the Advanced Photon Source.
About Argonne’s Center for Nanoscale Materials
The Center for Nanoscale Materials is one of the five DOE Nanoscale Science Research Centers, premier national user facilities for interdisciplinary research at the nanoscale supported by the DOE Office of Science. Together the NSRCs comprise a suite of complementary facilities that provide researchers with state-of-the-art capabilities to fabricate, process, characterize and model nanoscale materials, and constitute the largest infrastructure investment of the National Nanotechnology Initiative. The NSRCs are located at DOE’s Argonne, Brookhaven, Lawrence Berkeley, Oak Ridge, Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories. For more information about the DOE NSRCs, please visit https://science.osti.gov/User-Facilities/User-Facilities-at-a-Glance.
Argonne National Laboratory seeks solutions to pressing national problems in science and technology. The nation’s first national laboratory, Argonne conducts leading-edge basic and applied scientific research in virtually every scientific discipline. Argonne researchers work closely with researchers from hundreds of companies, universities, and federal, state and municipal agencies to help them solve their specific problems, advance America’s scientific leadership and prepare the nation for a better future. With employees from more than 60 nations, Argonne is managed by UChicago Argonne, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, visit https://energy.gov/science.