The Mauck Lab uses physical chemistry to study the properties of organic semiconductors in the solid state.  A semiconductor has electrical properties in between an insulator, such as glass, and a metal, such as copper. What makes a semiconductor particularly useful in modern technologies is the ability to control the movement of electrical charge (current) based on an energy input. While the electricity that powers the lights in our room is controlled manually when we flick a light switch, semiconductor chips can be used as transistors to programmatically switch current on and off to power processes in our computers and many other devices. The field of optoelectronics focuses on how light emission results from an input of current, as in display or lighting technology, and how light absorption may generate current via the photovoltaic effect, as in solar cell modules.  

Students work across many different areas of chemistry, ranging from instrumental techniques such as UV-Vis absorption and FTIR spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry, to organic synthesis, crystal growth, and thin film preparation. Students often also pursue some computational work, either through spectroscopic data analysis or in quantum mechanical calculations by using density functional theory to model electronic structure, molecular geometry, and vibrational modes.