Plasmonic nanoparticles have very large absorption cross sections and can concentrate the local density of photon states on the nano scale. When they are coupled to molecules or semiconductor nanocrystals and form different hybrid nanostructures, various light-matter interaction processes can be significantly enhanced or manipulated, including optical responses like fluorescence...
Creating sustainable and clean sources of energy is an outstanding problem of importance for the current generation of scientists to solve. Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) are a promising renewable energy source but require improvements to their architectures and better fundamental understanding of the effects of organic chromophore morphology on the resulting...
This dissertation explores ways to utilize physical parameters at the nanoscale interface to control the properties of mixed-dimensional heterojunctions (MDHJs). MDHJs combine the desirable properties of different classes of low-dimensional nanomaterials (materials that are quantum confined in at least one dimension). While MDHJs have achieved superlative performance for a variety...
This work examines important heterogeneous processes of organic molecules on surfaces, in the contexts of atmospheric and indoor environments. In large forest ecosystems, biogenic secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) constitute a dominant fraction of organic particulate matter in the atmosphere. The formation of SOAs starts from the emission of volatile organic...
Metal halide perovskites have recently emerged as one of the most promising active layers in solar cells for their high power conversion efficiency (>25%) and ease of synthesis and deposition. Spatial heterogeneity is inevitable with current fabrication methods for both monocrystalline and polycrystalline perovskite thin films and crystals. The morphology-dependent...
Recent developments in research concerning organic photovoltaics (OPVs) have overseen massive increases in device performance and the ascension of electron acceptor materials that outclass the preeminent acceptor compounds, buckminsterfullerene (C60) derivatives. New design strategies in the molecular structure of perylenediimides (PDIs) and fused-ring electron acceptors (FREAs) have increased single-junction photovoltaic...
When a collection of individual units behave synchronously, it is often useful to describe the actions of the group. Broadly speaking in Physics, individuals are described as particles and collective actions are described using waves. However, the dynamic symphony of life ordains that orchestral sections play in harmony for a...
In this Thesis, I describe some recent developments in the field of artificial molecular machines to which I have made contributions. In Chapter 1, I survey the rise and promise of molecular nanotopology, a relatively new discipline focusing on molecular knots and links that offers unprecedented opportunities to access high-energy...
Spin-orbit coupling (SOC) underlies myriad phenomena in chemistry and physics. Arbitrary manipulation of spin-orbit coupling would enable precise control over such parameters as magnetic anisotropy, the sensitivity of quantum sensors, and even the selectivity of certain catalytic processes. Herein, I describe my efforts directed towards utilizing SOC as a handle...
Although electrostatics interactions in fluids have been studied for many decades, new results in this field are still challenging our classical understanding of electrolytes. The combination of electrostatics and self-assembly yields many interesting yet challenging problems that are of fundamental scientific interest and show promise for industrial applications. In this...
