Bianconi The overall goal of this proposal is to optimize the properties of new inorganic polymer network materials and to create others of specific designed properties by new synthetic techniques. The approach is to use a recently devised process for the functionalization of polysilyne network polymers to introduce new functional groups which enhance, modify, or create new electronic and physical properties in the polymers. Specifically, fluorinated and alkoxide side chains will be explored as means of improving these polymers' sensitivities as deep UV photoresists. Grafted polymer sidechains will also be studied as means of altering the polymers' solubility properties and decreasing their absorptivities at 193 nm, the target wavelength in microlithographic applications. Attempt will be made to create new surface-imaging methods, and new materials, by applying functionalization reaction sequence to solid-state surfaces. Finally, syntheses and properties will be optimized for two new network backbone polymer systems, the polystannynes and the polycarbynes. The tin-based polymers will be studied as soluble photolytic precursors to conductive and transparent optical glasses, and the carbon-based polymers will be studied as examples of previously-unknown carbon-based macromolecules and as low temperature and pressure precursors to diamond and hard carbon ceramics. %%% The overall goal of this proposal is to optimize the properties of new inorganic polymer network materials and to create others of specific designed properties by new synthetic techniques. A recently devised process will be used to introduce new functional groups which enhance, modify, or create new electronic and physical properties in the polymers. The development of such new materials would have substantial impact on the development of new fabrication and processing procedures for electronic and photonic devices and for the understanding of the fundamental chemistry and properties of soluble inorganic network.
