This project is being supported by the Inorganic, Bioinorganic and Organometallic Chemistry Program under the Research in Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) activity, which is part of the Foundation's effort to help assure a broad base for scientific research through enhancing the scientific and technical training of students in undergraduate institutions by involving them in high quality research. This project will involve the synthesis of electronically conducting organometallic polymers, some of which may change their electrical properties upon binding small molecules and so serve as sensors for these molecules. Metallocenes with attached pyrrole groups will be used to form conducting polymers of varying lengths. A variety of analytical techniques will be used to characterize the polymers and molecular modelling methods will be used to correlate physical and electronic properties. A particular goal is to determine whether these polymers can undergo ring slippage to coordinate small molecules, such as CO, in a reversible fashion that will cause a change in conductance and so would allow these materials to be used as sensors. Undergraduates will perform multidisciplinary research supported under the RUI activity with the goal of developing new conducting materials as sensors for small molecules, such as carbon monoxide. ?%¢ />? ??À/>?? /???¢ ?> ¥©Ã¢à ?/Â¥/%`Â¥?? ¢??Â/?â />? / ???/? ?/>Àà ? ¢??Â/?à ¢Ã>¢?Â¥??à ?>¢¥??_Ã>Â¥/% _Ã¥©??¢ ??%% ?à ?¢Ã? ?> ¥©?¢ ???,
