Energy Storage in Molecules

Informazioni relative al progetto

ESiM

ID dell’accordo di sovvenzione: 101046364

DOI

10.3030/101046364

Progetto chiuso

Data della firma CE 22 Marzo 2022

Data di avvio 1 Aprile 2022

Data di completamento 31 Marzo 2026

Finanziato da

• The European Innovation Council (EIC)

Costo totale

€ 2 999 822,00

Contributo UE

€ 2 999 822,00

Coordinato da

TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAET DRESDEN
Germany

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ESiM (Energy Storage in Molecules)

Periodo di rendicontazione: 2023-04-01 al 2024-09-30

Sintesi del contesto e degli obiettivi generali del progetto

The main objective of the ESiM project is to create the scientific basis for a new technology addressing the pressing challenges relating to scalable clean energy storage. The ESiM strategy makes use of the conformational degrees of freedom of organic molecules. This concept circumvents the limits of battery technology which is based on ions flow and on environmentally harmful substances.

Lavoro eseguito dall’inizio del progetto fino alla fine del periodo coperto dalla relazione e principali risultati finora ottenuti

During the first reporting period ESiM synthetized the first molecular rotors and switches and started to develop numerical and theoretical tools to explore energy storage in molecules and design molecular rotors with the needed properties. Low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy experiments on single molecules and 2D networks have been performed.

During RP2, ESiM synthesised new vertical rotors and switches, based on carbene-NHC and vertical subphthalocyanine platforms. Theoretical work was performed to simulate the thermalization processes in single adsorbed molecules. Furthermore, we have designed and started to construct a bimetallic micro-cantilever experiment operating under UHV conditions for the detection of energy stored in molecular layers.

Progressi oltre lo stato dell’arte e potenziale impatto previsto (incluso l’impatto socioeconomico e le implicazioni sociali più ampie del progetto fino ad ora)

Experiments on single molecules started in RP1 with the investigation of a DMNI-P single-molecule rotor on the Au(111) surface, which is able to rotate in one direction by inelastic tunneling electronic excitations. A statistical analysis of the rotational rate depending on the applied bias voltages allowed us to determine the involved vibrational modes. The behavior by thermal excitations was investigated too.

Experiments on single-molecule rotors and switches continued during RP2. We determined the experimental rotational barrier height for two molecular rotors.

We fabricated a series of molecular porous networks on Au(111) with tuneable internal pore diameters. Different combinations of potential molecular rotors placed inside the porous networks were investigated.

We theoretically explored which design excited state potential energy surfaces need to allow mechanical energy storage and unidirectional rotation.

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