New Materials for Sustainable Energy - Kinetically Locked Copper(I) Complexes For DyeSensitized Solar Cells and Functional Europium(III) Complexes For Organic Light EmittingDiodes

Oman holds 5.4 billion barrels of proven oil reserves as of 2020, ranking 21st in the world and accounting for about 0.3% of the world's total oil reserves. However, the Sultanate s petroleum reserve has started to decline from 2015, which is a matter of grave concern due to the exponentially increasing energy demand for the rapidly developing Omani society. Hence an alternative, cheap and sustainable energy research is of strategic importance to the Sultanate. Fortunately, Oman, with its ample sunshine, provides an ideal environment for solar energy research. Solar energy has emerged as a potential non-contaminating energy source and is the first choice of every researcher in the energy sector. Researchers are working worldwide for the development of cheap solar cells (SCs) for harvesting sunlight into electrical energy efficiently. A complementary strategy in energy research involves efficient usage of available limited energy. To save the energy generated by the SCs, scientists have embarked on the development of high-performance organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs). OLEDS are poised to replace the high-energy consuming devices to save the much-needed energy. The prime thrust of this strategic project is to design and develop new cheap metal-organic hybrid materials for applications in SCs and OLEDs. The project will focus on the development of reliable synthetic protocols for new hybrid materials consisting of ?-conjugated organic framework incorporating transition and lanthanide metal ions for application in energy generation and energy saving devices, thereby providing an integrated approach towards developing new materials for sustainable energy. The past two decades have witnessed a large volume of research on ?-conjugated organic materials incorporating a variety of chromophores for the development of hybrid metal-organic materials for energy applications (SCs and OLEDs). The performance of such materials-based devices depends on their absorption profile, bandgap, triplet excitons, charge transfer and other factors. The organic framework arbitrates the absorption profile and the bandgap while the metal ion plays a synergistic effect on the photophysical properties. Metal ions also provides a redox and paramagnetic centre to generate active species for charge transport and increases the conductivity of the organic materials. Overall, the metal-organic hybrid materials possess improved materials properties for application in O-E devices. The project will address the following key areas: (i) design and synthesis of sterically encumbered ancillary ligands and their kinetically locked heteroleptic copper (I) complexes, (ii) synthesis of novel tris(?-diketonate) europium(III) complexes incorporating conjugated terpyridine ancillary ligands to impose enhanced asymmetry around the Eu(III), (iii) physico-chemical, electro-chemical and structural characterization of the newly synthesized materials, (iv) study the structure-property relationships by combing experimental methods with computational studies to help future generation of researchers in designing high-performance metal-organic hybrid materials and finally, (v) fabrication and assessment of performances of SCs from the heteroleptic Cu(I) complex and red-emitting OLEDs from the synthesized ternary Eu(III) complexes. The project will develop scientific and research skills and expertise in the Sultanate of Oman. This will be achieved by providing training to the graduate students, technical staffs, research assistants, young faculty and by developing laboratory facilities in the department of Chemistry at SQU. Successful implementation of the project will establish SQU as a research hub in SC and OLED materials and the developed scientific knowledge will boost Oman s energy sector and the economy. An attempt will be made to establish new research collaborations and strengthen the on-going collaborations with leading institutions in Europe, China, and the United States of America. It will also enhance SQU s standing and ranking in research internationally by disseminating research findings in high impact international journals and conferences as well as by patenting novel O-E materials and devices.