Thermotropic Side-Chain Polymer and Small-Molecule Ionic Liquid Crystals with Ion Transport in Nanoscale Domains*

Electrochemical energy storage devices are increasingly desired for the electrification of transportation and utilization of renewably generated power.  Safety and performance of batteries is strongly dictated by the performance of the electrolyte.  Polymer and ionic liquid electrolytes offer potential advantages over traditional liquid and inorganic solid-state electrolytes, as they are non-volatile, yet flexible.  Single-ion conducting electrolytes that eliminate ion concentration gradients can offer further advantages: greater electrochemical stability allowing for higher voltage cells, lower interfacial impedance, and higher theoretical charge/discharge rates.  This talk will highlight our recent research on liquid crystalline electrolytes composed of side-chain ionomers or amphiphilic salts with solely non-polar chains, where we aim to understand ion transport in phase segregated, nanoscale ionic domains.  The chemistry of the tethered anion and chains are found to have implications on ionic domain morphology and ion transport properties.