This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project aimes to demonstrate the feasibility of synthesizing novel hybrid dendrimers utilizing a convergent synthetic approach. These dendrimers will exhibit enhanced solar light harvesting, light emitting, electron transporting, photonic, and other electronic and optoelectronic properties because of synergy in the optical and electronic properties of the nanocrystal core and peripheral group of the hybrid architecture. In addition, these dendrimers will be thermally stable > 300 C and soluble in common organic solvents such as tetrahydrofuran, chloroform, dichloromethane, toluene, chlorobenzene and cyclohexane.
Hybrid electronic materials will have major economic and environmental impact through realizing photovoltaic cells, organic light emitting-diodes, lasers, switches, memory devices, and sensors. Novel hybrid dendrimers can lead to energy efficient devices. It has been estimated that by 2025, Solid State Lighting could reduce the global usage of electricity for lighting by 50%. The cumulative impact in the U.S. alone would be: (a) saving 16.6 Quads (760 GW/Quad) of electrical energy, (b) eliminating 258 million metric tons of carbon emission, (c) removing the need for building 133 power stations (1000 MW each), and (d) cumulative financial savings of $115 Billion (1998 dollars).
