High-Performance Semiconducting Elastomers
Abstract
Over the course of this award, our investigations have elucidated many of the molecular and microstructural determinants of the mechanical properties of semiconducting polymers. The work has produced insights and methodologies with impacts within and beyond the field of stretchable electronics. For example, it has led to new metrological, synthetic, and computational methodologies for measuring, modifying, and predicting the mechanical properties of complex polymeric materials. The principal concerns of this proposal are to validate computational predictions and to apply the knowledge produced for semiconducting polymers broadly across polymer science. We began by performing the first measurements of the mechanical properties of a range of semiconducting polymers and have made hypotheses connecting molecular structure to mechanical properties. In parallel, we used synthetic chemistry to tune elements of the molecular structure systematically. The synthetic work was complemented with molecular dynamics simulations, whose goal is to determine how molecular structure influences solid-state structure as mediated by solvation. From the solid-state structure, it is possible to predict thermomechanical properties associated with deformability (e.g., glass transition temperature and modulus) based on nanoscale characteristics, like entanglement density, conjugation length, and conformational classes of molecules in solution and then in the solid state. We have also performed experiments on whole, integrated devices for novel applications. On these devices, we have used robotic testing apparatuses to predict locations of failure that can be mitigated by engineering the molecular structure or conditions of processing. Continuum-scale modeling is also performed on these device architectures. The work we have performed over the last three years of AFOSR support has focused largely on three areas.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 19, 2019
- Accession Number
- AD1086051
Entities
People
- Darren J. Lipomi
- Gaurav Arya
- Shyue P. Ong
Organizations
- University of California, San Diego