CAREER: Stretchable Light-Emitting Polymers with Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence

职业：具有热激活延迟荧光的可拉伸发光聚合物

• 批准号: 2239618
• 负责人: Sihong Wang
• 金额: $ 62.5万
• 依托单位: University of Chicago
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-02-01 至 2028-01-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2239618&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Stretchable; Light; Emitting; Polymers

PART 1: NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY For human-integrated wearable and implantable electronics, light-emitting devices (such as organic light-emitting diodes, OLEDs) play important roles for applications such as displays, light-based vital-sign monitoring and disease therapy, bio-imaging, and optical bio-stimulation of cell activities. For these devices to have conformable skin/tissue contacts and long-term compatibility, one of the key requirements is to have tissue-like mechanical stretchability. However, all the high-performance light-emitting inorganic and organic materials available so far are relatively rigid and brittle. This research will develop and study a new class of polymers that combines high-efficiency light-emitting mechanisms with rubber-like mechanical properties. These new polymers will be created through both the chemical synthesis of new structures and the physical engineering of existing chemical structures. Through fundamental studies on the influence of different rubbery designs on light-emitting performance, this research will provide design principles for this new class of polymers for achieving both high efficiency in light-emitting devices and high stretchability. Enabled by this research, the stretchable light-emitting technology could impact the emerging areas of precision healthcare, human-machine interactions, and artificial intelligence. This research will enrich the education and training for graduate and undergraduate students, as well as promote the participation of underrepresented minority (URM) students in STEM research through partnerships with high schools and the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago's South Side. PART 2: TECHNICAL SUMMARY Stretchable light-emitting devices represent an important component in the emerging area of human-integrated electronics that are desired to achieve skin/tissue-like mechanical properties and biocompatibility. However, for electroluminescent properties, the realization and understanding of the impacts of incorporating mechanically stretchable molecular designs on photophysical behaviors remain rare. This research aims to create a set of material design principles for integrating strain-dissipation mechanisms into a state-of-the-art category of light-emitting materials, that is "thermally activated delayed fluorescence" (TADF) polymers, so as to combine skin-like stretchability with high electroluminescence efficiencies. Specifically, this research will explore and study four general approaches for imparting stretchability onto TADF polymers: 1) chemically modulating the flexibility of polymer backbones; 2) chemically building flexibility onto polymer side chains; 3) physically loosening the interchain packing and interaction; 4) imparting stretchability onto “host” polymers for TADF emitters. Enabled by the new polymer designs from these four approaches, this research will carry out fundamental studies on the structure-property relationships that combine thermodynamic, mechanical, and electroluminescent aspects for TADF polymers by combining multi-aspect experimental characterizations and theoretical simulations. This research will also develop the future workforce at both undergraduate and graduate levels, with special relevance to for the emerging wearable and implantable electronics industry. The PI will also develop a new program for bringing STEM research to high school students in Chicago's South Side which have a high proportion of underrepresented minorities, as well as the development of scientific exhibits and public lectures for the “Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago”.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

第1部分：针对人类综合可穿戴和可植入的电子设备，发光设备（例如有机照明发光二极管，OLEDS）的非技术摘要起着重要作用，可用于显示器，例如基于光的生命符号监测和疾病疗法，生物直觉疗法，生物 - 现象以及细胞活性的光学生物味。对于这些设备具有一致的皮肤/组织触点和长期兼容性，关键要求之一是具有组织样的机械可伸缩性。但是，到目前为止，所有可用的高性能无机和有机材料都是相对刚性和脆性的。这项研究将开发和研究一类新的聚合物，将高效发光机制与橡胶样机械性能相结合。这些新聚合物将通过新结构的化学合成和现有化学结构的物理工程来创建。通过对不同橡胶设计对发光性能的影响的基本研究，该研究将为这类新型聚合物提供设计原理，以达到发光设备的高效率和高伸长性。通过这项研究，可拉伸的发光技术可能会影响精确医疗保健，人机相互作用和人工智能的新兴领域。这项研究将丰富研究生和本科生的教育和培训，并通过与高中和芝加哥南侧的科学与工业博物馆的合作伙伴关系来促进代表性不足的少数民族（URM）学生参与STEM研究。第2部分：技术摘要可拉伸的发光设备代表了人类集成电子产品的新兴区域的重要组成部分，这些组成部分需要实现皮肤/组织样的机械性能和生物相容性。但是，对于电致发光特性，对纳入机械拉伸分子设计对光体物理行为的影响的实现和理解仍然很少见。这项研究旨在创建一组材料设计原理，以将应变衰减机制整合到最先进的发光材料类别中，即“热激活的延迟荧光”（TADF）聚合物，以便结合皮肤样的可伸展性与高发光效率。具体而言，这项研究将探索和研究将可伸缩性赋予TADF聚合物的四种一般方法：1）化学调节聚合物骨架的柔韧性； 2）化学建立在聚合物侧链上的柔韧性； 3）物理松动链堆积和相互作用； 4）将可拉伸性赋予TADF发射器的“宿主”聚合物。通过这四种方法的新聚合物设计启用，这项研究将进行有关结构性关系的基本研究，这些研究结合了TADF聚合物的热力学，机械和电发光方面，通过结合多种镜头实验性特征和理论模拟。这项研究还将在本科和研究生水平上发展未来的员工队伍，并与新兴可穿戴和可植入的电子行业特别相关。 PI还将开发一项新计划，将STEM研究带到芝加哥南部的高中学生，该计划的代表性不足少数群体不足，并且开发了“芝加哥科学和工业博物馆的科学展览和公开讲座”。该奖项通过评估NSF的宣传来反映出，该奖项反映了审查的智力，这表明了众多的智力。

项目成果

High-efficiency stretchable light-emitting polymers from thermally activated delayed fluorescence

• DOI: 10.1038/s41563-023-01529-w
• 发表时间: 2023-04
• 期刊: Nature Materials
• 影响因子: 41.2
• 作者: Wei Liu;Cheng Zhang;Riccardo Alessandri;B. Diroll;Yang Li;Heyi Liang;Xiaochun Fan;Kai Wang;Himchan Cho;Youdi Liu;Yahao Dai;Qichao Su;Nan Li;Songsong Li;S. Wai;Qiang Li;Shiyang Shao;Lixiang Wang;Jie Xu;Xiaohong Zhang;D. Talapin;J. D. de Pablo;Sihong Wang