Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 19, 2026
12:36
Semiconductors and Characteristics of P-N Junctions
Published on: April 30, 2023
33.8K
Repurposing DNA-binding agents as H-bonded organic semiconductors
Fengjiao Zhang1,2, Vincent Lemaur3, Wookjin Choi4,5
1Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 600 South Mathews Avenue, Urbana, Illinois, 61801, USA.
Nature Communications
|September 19, 2019
Summary
New organic semiconductors derived from DNA topoisomerase inhibitors offer unique charge transport. Hydrogen bonds guide molecular assembly and enhance charge mobility in these bioinspired materials.
Area of Science:
- Materials Chemistry
- Organic Electronics
- Bioinspired Materials
Background:
- Organic semiconductors typically utilize polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
- Bioinspired materials chemistry offers novel charge transport mechanisms and biomolecule interactions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To discover novel organic semiconductors from DNA topoisomerase inhibitors.
- To investigate the role of hydrogen bonding in charge transport and molecular assembly.
Main Methods:
- Utilized ellipticine as a model compound.
- Measured charge carrier mobility using microwave conductivity and field-effect transistors.
- Demonstrated printed transistor devices and chemical sensors.
Main Results:
- Identified organic semiconductors with conjugated backbones and hydrogen-bonding moieties.
- Found hydrogen bonds crucial for polymorph assembly and efficient charge transport pathways.
- Achieved high intrinsic hole mobilities (up to 6.5 cm²V⁻¹s⁻¹) and significant long-range mobilities (up to 1.3 × 10⁻³ cm²V⁻¹s⁻¹).
Conclusions:
- DNA topoisomerase inhibitors represent a new class of organic semiconductors.
- Hydrogen bonding plays a vital role in optimizing charge transport in these materials.
- Demonstrated potential applications in printed electronics and chemical sensing.
Related Concept Videos
12:36Semiconductors
33.8K
Source: Derek Wilson, Asantha Cooray, PhD, Department of Physics & Astronomy, School of Physical Sciences, University of California, Irvine, CA
Semiconductors are materials whose ability to conduct an electrical current depends strongly on their temperature and level of impurity. The most common type of semiconductor material is crystalline silicon. Most pure semiconductors are not outstanding conductors; to improve conductivity, a pure semiconductor is often combined or...
Semiconductors are materials whose ability to conduct an electrical current depends strongly on their temperature and level of impurity. The most common type of semiconductor material is crystalline silicon. Most pure semiconductors are not outstanding conductors; to improve conductivity, a pure semiconductor is often combined or...
33.8K
01:22Semiconductors
1.4K
There is variation in the electrical conductivity of materials - metals, semiconductors, and insulators that are showcased with the help of the energy band diagrams.
Metals such as copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), or lead (Pb) have low resistivity and feature conduction bands that are either not fully occupied or overlap with the valence band, making a bandgap non-existent. This allows electrons in the highest energy levels of the valence band to easily transition to the conduction band upon gaining...
Metals such as copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), or lead (Pb) have low resistivity and feature conduction bands that are either not fully occupied or overlap with the valence band, making a bandgap non-existent. This allows electrons in the highest energy levels of the valence band to easily transition to the conduction band upon gaining...
1.4K
05:10Drug Repurposing Hypothesis Generation Using the "RE:fine Drugs" System
10.2K
Here we describe a protocol using the web-based drug repurposing hypothesis generation tool: "RE:fine Drugs." This protocol can be modified to a user's preferences at the level of the query type (gene, drug or disease) and/or the range of available advanced options.
10.2K
02:51Metal-Ligand Bonds
24.0K
The hemoglobin in the blood, the chlorophyll in green plants, vitamin B-12, and the catalyst used in the manufacture of polyethylene all contain coordination compounds. Ions of the metals, especially the transition metals, are likely to form complexes.
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
In these complexes, transition metals form coordinate covalent bonds, a kind of Lewis acid-base interaction in which both of the electrons in the bond are contributed by a donor (Lewis base) to an electron acceptor (Lewis acid). The Lewis acid in...
24.0K
00:49Gravimetry: Inorganic And Organic Precipitating Agents
6.5K
In gravimetry, the precipitant is chosen carefully to obtain a pure solid that can be easily filtered. Common inorganic precipitants can be used to determine several cations and anions. In some cases, the formation of the same precipitate can be used to determine the cation and the anion. For example, the reaction of barium and chromate ions to give barium chromate is used to determine both barium and chromate. However, precipitates such as hydroxides, oxalates, and metal ammonium phosphates...
6.5K
02:49Bond Energies and Bond Lengths
31.2K
Stable molecules exist because covalent bonds hold the atoms together. The strength of a covalent bond is measured by the energy required to break it, that is, the energy necessary to separate the bonded atoms. Separating any pair of bonded atoms requires energy — the stronger a bond, the greater the energy required to break it.
31.2K