Florian Glöcklhofer is researching new methods for combining known chemical compounds to form new types of molecules. These will then have various desirable properties, such as good charge transport properties or the ability to store electricity. For this project, he has now been awarded an ERC Starting Grant. This grant is endowed with 1.5 million euros, making it one of the most highly endowed and prestigious grants in the European research landscape. The ERC Starting Grants are aimed at excellent young researchers and are awarded by the European Research Council. The research work will be carried out at the TU Wien Institute of Applied Synthetic Chemistry starting in November.

From one to three dimensions

INTERCHAIN focuses on conjugated polymers, i.e. plastics in which single and double bonded carbon atoms alternate along the chain. This is also the case with aromatic, ring-shaped compounds, which have good charge transport properties due to the delocalised electrons. While the mobility of electrons in polymer chains is limited to one dimension, in aromatic compounds the negatively charged particles can already move in two dimensions.

Researchers have now discovered how electrons can even move in three dimensions in organic molecules. To make this possible, another class of molecules is used: antiaromatic molecules. Although these molecules also have a ring-shaped structure, they are more reactive than aromatic compounds and therefore less stable. If they are stacked on top of each other, three-dimensional aromatic systems can be formed that have similar properties to aromatic molecules. “However, the instability of the antiaromatic molecules used poses a tremendous challenge for potential applications, which is why so-called conjugated macrocycles have become the focus of attention,” reports Florian Glöcklhofer. Conjugated macrocycles are also ring-shaped, but larger than ordinary aromatic or antiaromatic compounds. “What is particularly interesting about these molecules is that they are usually more stable than antiaromatic molecules and can still fulfil the requirements to form three-dimensional aromatic systems,” says Glöcklhofer.

New classes of molecules come into focus

While it has already been shown that stacked antiaromatic compounds can form three-dimensional aromatic systems, research into conjugated macrocycles regarding such effects is still in its infancy. Florian Glöcklhofer not only wants to gain a better understanding of three-dimensional aromatic systems, but also to develop new concepts with which such systems can be utilised for electronic applications. Alongside conjugated macrocycles, the potential of macrocycle-based conjugated polymers for three-dimensional aromatic structures will be investigated as part of INTERCHAIN.

“The five-year funding allows me to accompany the entire development process. From the verification of initial hypotheses all the way to testing first applications,” says Florian Glöcklhofer, emphasising the added value of the ERC funding. It is hoped that the new class of molecules will one day be used in batteries or solar cells.

Florian Glöcklhofer

Florian Glöcklhofer studied and completed his doctorate in Technical Chemistry at TU Wien. After completing his doctorate in 2017, he worked for a further year as a postdoc at TU Wien before transferring to Imperial College in London on a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowship and then an Erwin Schrödinger Fellowship. In 2023, Glöcklhofer finally returned to the Institute of Applied Synthetic Chemistry at TU Wien, while remaining associated with Imperial College London as a Visiting Researcher.  

His research in the field of conjugated organic compounds focusses on the design and synthesis of cyclic molecules, so-called conjugated macrocycles. These can be used for battery electrodes and organic electronics, for example. Another focus of his work is the development of new synthetic approaches for aromatic organic compounds.

Contact

Dr. Florian Glöcklhofer
TU Wien
Institute of Applied Synthetic Chemistry
florian.gloecklhofer@tuwien.ac.at

Text: Sarah Link