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ROESLER GROUP
HOMEPAGE
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synthetic inorganic and
organometallic chemistry
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| Current Research | |||
| Research Areas | Dendrimers with Inorganic
Skeletons Dendrimers
[1-3] (from the Greek “dendron” ~ three, branch and “meros” ~ part) are
highly branched, regular, three-dimensional monodisperse macromolecules
with a branch occurring regularly at each monomer unit or after a
succession
of monomer units. The hallmark of dendrimer chemistry is the ability to
synthesize
in a controlled manner very high molecular weight polymers with narrow
molecular
weight distributions.
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During
the last
decade, dendrimer chemistry has expanded in a spectacular fashion, as
illustrated
by numerous recent reviews [1-8]. This dramatic development was
driven by the practical applications dendrimers found as inkjet inks
and
toners, in vitro diagnostics, MRI contrast agents, and
size standards. The envisaged applications are much more numerous and it is
estimated that large molecules with dendritic
architecture will have a major technological impact in the future. The
proven
capability of dendrimers to host, either in the internal cavities or on
the
surface, smaller molecules that can be later released in a slow
equilibrium
makes dendrimers promising drug delivery agents, as well as slow
delivery
agents for perfumes and herbicides. The use of dendrimers as catalyst
carriers
aims to combine the advantages of homogeneous and heterogeneous
catalysis.
The large light absorption and focalisation capability of dendrimers
functionalized
on the periphery with chromophores can be exploited in application as
photoactive materials (i.e. light harvesting devices). Other
applications include surfactants, polymer additives, thin films and
coatings, sensors, and nanocomposites.
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Although
the majority of dendrimers reported so far have organic backbones, a
variety of dendrimers
containing heteroatoms (Si, P, B, Ge, Bi) have been synthesized as well
[7, 8]. In most of these cases though, the heteroatoms were
intercalated into the
organic skeleton. The only dendrimers with an inorganic framework
reported to
date are first and second generation silicon derivatives. At the same
time,
a large variety of "classical" inorganic polymers are known and many of
them
are manufactured on an industrial scale. Among these,
polyphosphazenes,
polysiloxanes and polysilanes are most widely used.
Our
group designs
and synthesizes dendrimers with an inorganic skeleton. These molecules
will
exploit the special properties of the inorganic frameworks in order to
produce
dendritic materials with properties superior to the organic analogues.
Primarily targeted are dendrimers with applications as
photoactive materials
and drug delivery agents.
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[1]
J. Issberner, R. Moors, F. Vögtle, Angew. Chem. Int.
Ed. Engl. 1994, 33, 2413. [2] A. Archut, F. Vögtle, Chem. Soc.
Reviews
1998, 27, 233. [3] A. W. Bosman, H. M. Janssen, E. W. Meijer, Chem.
Rev. 1999,
99, 1665. [4] D. A. Tomalia, A. M. Naylor, W. A. Goddard III, Angew.
Chem.
Int. Ed. Engl. 1990, 29, 138. [5] S. Hecht, J. M. J. Fréchet,
Angew.
Chem. Int. Ed. 2001, 40, 74. [6] A. Adronov, J. M. J. Fréchet,
Chem.
Commun. 2000, 1701. [7] J.-P. Majoral, A.-M. Caminade, Chem. Rev. 1999,
99,
845. [8] H. Frey, C. Lach, K. Lorenz, Adv. Mater. 1998, 10, 279.
Books on dendrimers: G. R. Newkome, C. N. Moorefield, F. Vögtle, Dendrimers and Dendrons, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim 2001. F. Vögtle, Ed., Topics in Current Chemistry, Vol. 197, Dendrimers, Springer, Berlin 1998, and Vol. 210, Dendrimers II, Springer, Berlin 2000. Books on inorganic polymers: J. E. Mark, H. R. Allcock, R. West, Inorganic Polymers, Prentice Hall, New Jersey, 1992. U. Schubert, N. Hüsing, Synthesis of Inorganic Materials, Chap. 5, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, 2000. More information on dendrimer research can be found at: Dendrimer Research at Berkley, Fréchet Group Dendrimer Research in Berlin, Vögtle Group Dendrimer research at Akron, Newkome Group Phosphorus Dendrimer Research in Toulouse, Majoral Group Dendrimer Research at Stanford Dendrimer Research at Michigan Molecular Institute Phosphorus Dendrimer Research at Dendrichem PAMAM Dendrimers at Dendritech Inc. Dendrimer Research at IBM Who's Who in Dendrimer Research More dendrimer links A. N. Shipway, Review on Dendrimer Research More information on inorganic polymers can be found at: Inorganic Polymers at PennState, Allcock Group Inorganic Polymers at the University of Toronto, Manners Group School of Polymers at the University of Southern Mississippi Phosphorus Dendrimer Research in Tolouse, Majoral Group |
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