Robust Two- and Three-Dimensional Conjugated Organic Structures for Electrochemical Applications

Abstract

Robust conjugated two- (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) non-metallic conductive structures have attracted immense interest due to their unusual electronic, optoelectronic, magnetic and electrocatalytic properties. Their tunable structures and properties promise to offer many opportunities in various applications. Nevertheless, methods developed for the synthesis of non-metallic conductive materials, which are capable of producing fused-aromatic based stable frameworks with uniformly decorated heteroatoms with/without holes, remain limited, even after decades of intensive exploration in science and technology. To overcome these issues, stable organic materials have been designed and synthesized. They have uniformly distributed heteroatoms,1 holes with heteroatoms2 and transition metal nanoparticles in the holes.3 The structures were confirmed using various characterization techniques, including scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Based on the stoichiometry of 2D layered structures, they were, respectively, designated C2N, C3N, C4N, and M@C2N (M = Co, Ni, Pd, Pt, Ru). Their electronic and electrical properties were evaluated by electrooptical and electrochemical measurements along with density-functional theory (DFT) calculations. Furthermore, robust three-dimensional (3D) cage-like organic materials have also been constructed and they show high sorption properties.4,5 The results suggest that these newly-developed 2D and 3D non-metallic conductive materials offer greater opportunities, from wet-chemistry to device applications.