Josh Lipton-Duffin, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia

Surface-confined polymerisation: synthetic chemistry without a beaker

One of the most intriguing ideas of the last decade is the concept of translating well-known chemical synthesis methods into the realm of surface science. The ability to interrogate individual atoms and molecules by scanning probe microscopies affords new insights into well-established reaction pathways, and in some cases can reveal unexpected and often surprising new structures. In this seminar I will describe our longstanding interest in molecular reactions with the aim of producing new interesting and functional materials, such as simple polyphenylenes, industrially-relevant thiophenes, and exotic two-dimensional analogues of graphene.