Designing highly delocalized solitons by harnessing the structural parity of π-conjugated polymers
π-Conjugated polymers are a class of materials featuring an alternation of single and double bonds along their backbone, a configuration that can result in delocalized π-electrons. The unique electronic structure of these polymers makes them vital in applications such as organic electronics, solar c...
| Autores: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión aceptada para publicación |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2024 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) |
| Repositorio: | DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:digital.csic.es:10261/389271 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/389271 https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85206924212 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Conjugated polymers Electronic properties and materials Scanning probe microscopy |
| Sumario: | π-Conjugated polymers are a class of materials featuring an alternation of single and double bonds along their backbone, a configuration that can result in delocalized π-electrons. The unique electronic structure of these polymers makes them vital in applications such as organic electronics, solar cells and light-emitting diodes. A key feature in such materials is the emergence of topological quasiparticles, termed solitons, which are crucial for their observed high electrical conductivity. By using on-surface synthesis, we present a chemical reaction based on the regio- and stereoselective coupling of indenyl moieties for fabricating π-conjugated acenoindenylidene polymers, which feature a longitudinal polyacetylene backbone, on a Au(111) surface. The relationship between structural parity and electronic properties is investigated. We discover that odd-membered polymers exhibit an in-gap soliton state, which, due to their low bandgaps, spatially extends several nanometres along the longitudinal polyacetylene backbone. Our findings pave the way for the design of π-conjugated polymers that are able to host intrinsic solitons through chemical design by exploiting structural parity, without the need for external doping. (Figure presented.) |
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