This master thesis was focused on synthesis and characterization of active components for the fabrication of hydrogel-based organic solar cells (artificial leaves).
The synthesis of a complex photoactive dendrimer and a novel ruthenium sensitizer and the synthesis of a “clickable” β-cyclodextrin were successfully achieved. This “nanovelcro” will be a crucial component of the final photoactive dendrimer unit, and will be used in forthcoming work.
Preliminary fluorescence and cyclic voltammetry studies were performed for photoactive species, PIMAM-OMeG1 and Ru(dcbpy)2(NCS)(EAFc), with very promising results. PIMAM-OMeG1 has shown the capacity of absorbs and emits light and both species have a redox potential.
Due to the low solubility of photoactive dendrimers in organic solvents and water, PIMAM-OMeG1 suffered several transformations for improving its solubility. Therefore, the final devices were constructed using an ion gel as matrix, instead of a hydrogel
