New Materials

Research in the field of inorganic materials at the ICPF takes place almost exclusively in the Department of Laser Chemistry. The department focuses on preparation of thin films and nanostructured materials by an array of deposition techniques and is well equipped with vacuum equipment for deposition of new materials, but also with instrumental technology for characterization of the prepared materials. Through laser ablation, radiofrequency deposition, or chemical deposition from the gas phase, we prepare nanostructured materials based on silicon and germanium for photovoltaic applications and oxides, suboxides, oxycarbides, and oxynitrides for photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical applications. Characterization of materials is done by an array of spectroscopic techniques such as IR, UV-Vis, Raman, photoelectronic, and EDX spectroscopy or with scanning electron microscopy. Crystalline samples are analysed by powder diffractometry, while gaseous and liquid samples are analysed by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry.

Research in the field of new organic materials at the ICPF takes place in three scientific departments. Materials based on carbosilane structures such as dendrimers, dendrons, and amphiphiles are prepared for use in biomedical applications in the Department of Bioorganic Compounds and Nanocomposites. Phosphonium dendrimers are capable of forming complexes with therapeutic sequences of nucleic acids and demonstrate both lower toxicity and more effective transfection into cells. Polycyclic aromatic compounds suitable for construction of organic electronic components are synthesized in the Department of Advanced Materials and Organic Synthesis. Compounds prepared on the basis of helicenes and phenacenes, derived from the structure of 2D graphene, demonstrate semiconducting characteristics. Thin films prepared from such materials can then be used for the construction of OFET or OLED devices or, with electropolymerization, for preparation of a permselective sensor layer directly on the electrode.
Within the Department of Chemistry and Physics of Aerosols, the Thermodynamics of Specific Materials Group studies the use of ionic liquids for energy storage. As heat transfer fluids offering greater efficiency in energy use from renewable resources, these materials represent an interesting alternative to materials currently used in heat accumulators.

Research in the field of composite materials at the ICPF takes place in the Department of Bioorganic Compounds and Nanocomposites. Prepared materials are designed primarily for capturing gases such as CO2 or for effective gas separation. Adsorbents derived from layered silicates and porous polymers are tested for these purposes. These matrices are then modified by hyperbranched synthetic macromolecules – dendrimers. These molecules have significant internal volume and a large number of functional groups on the surface. These properties increase the adsorption capacity and selectivity of the new material.