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Silver is the material of choice for printed electronics. However, dispersed silver particles can block the fine nozzles of an inkjet print head and after printing the patterns have to be sintered at elevated temperatures to provide high conductivity. In this work we investigated and optimized the printing of a reactive silver ink which contains silver in complexed form, therefore avoiding disadvantages of particle dispersions. After printing the complexed silver is transferred into metallic by evaporating the complexing ligands at 50 °C. The ink contains around 11% silver and has a surface tension of 26 mN m− 1. It is stable for at least 1 month at room temperature and for at least 3 months at 2–8 °C. The ink was tested on several substrates and an application on textile is shown. The inkjet printed electronic circuit paths on the fabric withstand washing tests, moisture, and heat as well as crumpling.

We are investigating the possibilities and the technical requirements to do nanopatterning on arbitrary curved surfaces. This is done considering the opportunities and possibilities of additive manufacturing. One of the key elements is the necessity to deposit material in well-defined areas of various complex 3D objects. In order to achieve this we are developing a robot-based inkjet printing. We report on our progress with this respect and also on our efforts to perform nanoimprinting on curved, possibly 3D-printed objects using materials that can be deposited by inkjet printing. In the framework of this article, we provide an overview over our current status, the challenges and an outlook.

International audience; We report on formation of a new surface covalent organic framework (SCOF) based on a sequential polymerization in two stages. The bifunctional precursor used, p-bromo-benzene boronic acid (BBBA), was vapor deposited in ultra-high-vacuum conditions on a Au(111) surface. In a first step the boronic acid moieties reacted to form trimers linked by covalent boroxine rings. In a second step, an Ullmann coupling reaction was thermally activated to form C− C bonds between the trimers, leading to the final polymeric network. By this procedure the growth mechanism was optimized and the polymerization reaction yield could approach 100%. A well-extended network was obtained, differing from the ideal honeycomb-like network by a substantial number of nonhexagonal pores, which are intrinsic defects to the polymer structure. A comparison of the two competing reactions provides new insights into the complex mechanisms governing growth of two-dimensional covalent networks.

International audience; Eleven di- and trifunctional compounds based on a core-pyrene π structure (Co_Py) were synthesized and investigated for the formation of free radicals. The application of two- and three-component photoinitiating systems (different Co_Pys with the addition of iodonium or sulfonium salts, alkyl halide or amine) was investigated in detail for cationic and radical photopolymerization reactions under near-UV-vis light. The proposed compounds can behave as new photocatalysts. Successful results in terms of rates of polymerization and final conversions were obtained. The strong MO coupling between the six different cores and the pyrene moiety was studied by DFT calculations. The different chemical intermediates are characterized by ESR and laser flash photolysis experiments. The mechanisms involved in the initiation step are discussed, and relationships between the core structure, the Co_Py absorption property, and the polymerization ability are tentatively proposed.

The self-assembled structure of melamine (1,3,5-triazine-2,4,6-triamine) deposited on Cu(111) was studied under ultra-high-vacuum conditions using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy (UPS). Molecular packing and conformation were investigated as a function of the annealing temperature. The molecules deposited at room temperature were found to be aligned with the molecular plane approximately perpendicular to the surface. At around 150 °C, the molecules became aligned in a row-type structure and were all coupled to the Cu(111) surface. At still higher annealing temperatures, a new two-dimensional (2D) network was formed via the polymerization of the adsorbed monolayer of melamine. A multistep model consistent with STM, XPS, and UPS results is proposed, starting with a self-organized vertically adsorbed melamine monolayer and ending with the formation of a 2D network lying on Cu(111) interpreted as a ring-opening polymerizat...

International audience; A series of substituted 1,4-benzenediboronic acids (BDBA) was synthesized and their thermal properties investigated. Two diboronic acids were studied as building-blocks for covalent organic framework (COF) formation, namely 2,5-dimethoxy-1,4-benzenediboronic acid and 2-nitro-1,4-benzeneboronic acid. Interestingly, substitution of the BDBA core caused a dramatic decrease of the polymerization temperature leading to the formation of a less organized structure.

Adsorption of organic molecules on well-oriented single-crystal coinage metal surfaces fundamentally affects the energy distribution curve of ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy spectra. New features not present in the spectrum of the pristine metal can be assigned as ``interface states'' having some degree of molecule-substrate hybridization. Here it is shown that interface states having molecular orbital character can easily be identified at low binding energy as isolated features above the featureless substrate $sp$ plateau. On the other hand, much care must be taken in assigning adsorbate-induced features when these lie within the $d$-band spectral region of the substrate. In fact, features often interpreted as characteristic of the molecule-substrate interaction may actually arise from substrate photoelectrons scattered by the adsorbates. This phenomenon is illustrated through a series of examples of noble-metal single-crystal surfaces covered by monolayers of large $\ensuremath{\pi}$-conjugated organic molecules.