Matching Items (2)
Description
A driving force for studies of water, alcohols, and amides is the determination of the role of hydrogen bonding. Hydrogen bonds can break and reform, consequently creating supramolecular structures. Understanding the role supramolecular structures play in the dynamics of monohydroxyl alcohols is important to understanding hydrogen bonding in more complex systems such as proteins. Since many monohydroxyl alcohols are good glass formers, dielectric spectroscopy in the supercooled regime is used to gather information about the dynamics of these liquids. Application of high external fields will reversibly alter the polarization responses of the material from the linear response. This results in nonlinear dielectric effects (NDE) such as field induced suppression (saturation) and enhancement of amplitudes (chemical effects) as well as shifts in the time constants toward slower (entropy) and faster (energy absorption) dynamics.
The first part of this thesis describes the nonlinear dielectric experiments on monohydroxyl alcohols, with an emphasis on the time dependence of NDEs. For the first time, time-dependent experiments on monoalcohols were done, the results showed that NDEs occur on the Debye time scale. Furthermore, physical vapor deposition (PVD) is used to modify the supramolecular structure of 4-methyl-3-heptanol. Upon deposition the film cannot form the ring like structures, which are preferred in the bulk material. The as deposited film shows an enhancement of the dielectric peak by a factor of approximately 11 when compared to the bulk material. The conversion from the as deposited material back to the near bulk material was found to occur on the Debye timescale.
The second part of this thesis focuses on the question of what is governing the field induced changes seen in the liquids studied. Here a complete set of high field experiments on highly polar propylene carbonate derivatives were performed. It was demonstrated that these materials exhibit a Debye-like peak and using a combination of Adam-Gibbs and Fröhlich’s definition of entropy, proposed by Johari [G.P. Johari, J. Chem. Phys 138, 154503 (2013)], cannot solely be used to describe a frustration of dynamics. It is important to note that although these material exhibit a Debye like peak, the behavior is much different than monoalcohols.
The first part of this thesis describes the nonlinear dielectric experiments on monohydroxyl alcohols, with an emphasis on the time dependence of NDEs. For the first time, time-dependent experiments on monoalcohols were done, the results showed that NDEs occur on the Debye time scale. Furthermore, physical vapor deposition (PVD) is used to modify the supramolecular structure of 4-methyl-3-heptanol. Upon deposition the film cannot form the ring like structures, which are preferred in the bulk material. The as deposited film shows an enhancement of the dielectric peak by a factor of approximately 11 when compared to the bulk material. The conversion from the as deposited material back to the near bulk material was found to occur on the Debye timescale.
The second part of this thesis focuses on the question of what is governing the field induced changes seen in the liquids studied. Here a complete set of high field experiments on highly polar propylene carbonate derivatives were performed. It was demonstrated that these materials exhibit a Debye-like peak and using a combination of Adam-Gibbs and Fröhlich’s definition of entropy, proposed by Johari [G.P. Johari, J. Chem. Phys 138, 154503 (2013)], cannot solely be used to describe a frustration of dynamics. It is important to note that although these material exhibit a Debye like peak, the behavior is much different than monoalcohols.
ContributorsYoung-Gonzales, Amanda R (Author) / Richert, Ranko (Thesis advisor) / Angell, Charles (Committee member) / Wolf, George (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
This thesis is devoted to the theoretical and computational study of electron transport in molecular junctions where one or more hydrogen bonds are involved in the process. While electron transport through covalent bonds has been extensively studied, in recent work the focus has been shifted towards hydrogen-bonded systems due to their ubiquitous presence in biological systems and their potential in forming nano- junctions between molecular electronic devices and biological systems.
This analysis allows us to significantly expand our comprehension of the experimentally observed result that the inclusion of hydrogen bonding in a molecular junc- tion significantly impacts its transport properties, a fact that has important implications for our understanding of transport through DNA, and nano-biological interfaces in general. In part of this work I have explored the implications of quasiresonant transport in short chains of weakly-bonded molecular junctions involving hydrogen bonds. I used theoretical and computational analysis to interpret recent experiments and explain the role of Fano resonances in the transmission properties of the junction.
In a different direction, I have undertaken the study of the transversal conduction through nucleotide chains that involve a variable number of different hydrogen bonds, e.g. NH···O, OH···O, and NH···N, which are the three most prevalent hydrogen bonds in biological systems and organic electronics. My effort here has fo- cused on the analysis of electronic descriptors that allow a simplified conceptual and computational understanding of transport properties. Specifically, I have expanded our previous work where the molecular polarizability was used as a conductance de- scriptor to include the possibility of atomic and bond partitions of the molecular polarizability. This is important because it affords an alternative molecular descrip- tion of conductance that is not based on the conventional view of molecular orbitals as transport channels. My findings suggest that the hydrogen-bond networks are crucial in understanding the conductance of these junctions.
A broader impact of this work pertains the fact that characterizing transport through hydrogen bonding networks may help in developing faster and cost-effective approaches to personalized medicine, to advance DNA sequencing and implantable electronics, and to progress in the design and application of new drugs.
This analysis allows us to significantly expand our comprehension of the experimentally observed result that the inclusion of hydrogen bonding in a molecular junc- tion significantly impacts its transport properties, a fact that has important implications for our understanding of transport through DNA, and nano-biological interfaces in general. In part of this work I have explored the implications of quasiresonant transport in short chains of weakly-bonded molecular junctions involving hydrogen bonds. I used theoretical and computational analysis to interpret recent experiments and explain the role of Fano resonances in the transmission properties of the junction.
In a different direction, I have undertaken the study of the transversal conduction through nucleotide chains that involve a variable number of different hydrogen bonds, e.g. NH···O, OH···O, and NH···N, which are the three most prevalent hydrogen bonds in biological systems and organic electronics. My effort here has fo- cused on the analysis of electronic descriptors that allow a simplified conceptual and computational understanding of transport properties. Specifically, I have expanded our previous work where the molecular polarizability was used as a conductance de- scriptor to include the possibility of atomic and bond partitions of the molecular polarizability. This is important because it affords an alternative molecular descrip- tion of conductance that is not based on the conventional view of molecular orbitals as transport channels. My findings suggest that the hydrogen-bond networks are crucial in understanding the conductance of these junctions.
A broader impact of this work pertains the fact that characterizing transport through hydrogen bonding networks may help in developing faster and cost-effective approaches to personalized medicine, to advance DNA sequencing and implantable electronics, and to progress in the design and application of new drugs.
ContributorsWimmer, Michael (Author) / Mujica, Vladimiro (Thesis advisor) / Wolf, George (Committee member) / Chizmeshya, Andrew (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2017