Two-Component Sol-Gel-Materials

Technically applied sol-gel materials are usually prepared from two or more molecular precursors to tailor materials properties by modifying the chemical composition. Examples include inorganic-organic hybrid materials or mixed oxide materials. Deliberate tailoring the microstructure (texture, porosity) of multi-component sol-gel materials is a nearly unexploited option for a new generation of sol-gel materials. In the project, the interplay between the two (or more) different precursors during sol-gel processing with respect to the mutual arrangement of the building blocks in the final material will be investigated. The ultimate goal is the generation of new materials properties by deliberate chemical control of the structural arrangement of the chemically different units in the final material. Three types of materials will be investigated: * Materials with an ordered arrangement of the different building blocks (core/shell structures, for example). While the basic structural units (network, particles, etc.) are formed from one component, the second component could condense on the surface of the base structure. This process would be self-organizing and self-limiting. * Well-defined core/shell structures are expected when the second component is condensed to pre-formed and structural defined metal alkoxide clusters. * Materials with a homogeneous distribution of two different structural units. This will be achieved by tying the precursors together during sol-gel processing.