Design, Synthesis and Properties of Bipyridine-capped Oligothiophenes for Directed Energy and Electron Transfer in Molecular Electronic Applications

Sammanfattning: The earliest landmark in computer technology was construction of the Electronic Numerial Integrator and Computer, ENIAC. Computational switching was performed with vacuum tubes and relays, rather large in size, making this computer rather unwieldy. The next milestone came with the integration of transistors into computers as the switching component. Since then, transistors have been miniaturised dramatically, resulting in the amount of components integrated on a computer chip increasing logarithmically with time. The components are nowadays so small and so densely packed that problems with leak currents and cross-talk can arise and the lower limit for transistor size will soon be reached. In order to meet increasing demands on the size and performance of electronics, a new paradigm is due – the molecular electronics approach.Oligothiophenes have been shown to possess the physical and chemical characteristics required for electron/energy transport in molecular systems. However oligothiophenes must be electronically coupled to other components within a molecular circuit for them to be functional. In this work, different modes of incorporation of [2,2’]-bipyridinyl functionalities onto the ends of prototypic oligothiophene wires have been examined. The bipyridine connectors allow complexation to metal centres which can then function as a source or sink of electrons in the circuit. Ruthenium tris-bipyridine complexes, in particular, possess interesting electrochemical and photophysical characteristics, making them suitable for use in molecular electronics.This thesis reports synthetic strategies to a range of novel ligands based on the [2,2’]-bipyridinyl system, together with a study of the redox and fluorescence properties of their ruthenium tris-bipyridine complexes. The mode of connection between the chelating bipyridine and the first member of the oligothiophene chain was found to have a profound effect upon the fluorescence lifetimes and intensities of the resulting complexes. The discovery of complexes exhibiting long and intense fluorescence (a requirement for directed electron/energy transfer within molecular networks) thus forms an important design element in future prototypes.