COPE Seminar Series, Prof. Jason Locklin, UGA

Making Surfaces Smart

Surface-initiated polymerization reactions are rapidly developing as methods to prepare functional, high-tech coatings. This is a technique based on the growth of polymer molecules at the surface of a substrate in situ from a surface bound initiator, which results in the covalent attachment of polymer molecules to this substrate. Polymer layers in which the polymer chains are irreversibly immobilized to the substrate are especially attractive for a wide variety of applications, as these layers have excellent long-term stability, even in rather adverse environments. In addition to improved stability, the arrangement of stretched polymer chains allows for high densities of functional groups to be obtained in a limited area. We are currently developing new polymerization methodologies using surface initiated polymerization for the following applications: Light induced mechanical motion, orthogonal click-chemistry, colorimetric sensors, and enzymatic biofuel cells made from conjugated polymers.

Jason Locklin obtained his BS from Millsaps College in 1999. He graduated with his PhD from the University of Houston in 2004 with Gobet Advincula, and went to work as a Director of Central Intelligence Postdoctoral Scholar at Stanford University in 2005 with Zhenan Bao. In 2007, Locklin joined the University of Georgia as an Assistant Professor in Chemistry and the Faculty of Engineering. He has been awarded the Central Intelligence Agency Young Investigator Award (2007) and the NSF CAREER Award (2010). His group is currently investigating surface initiated polymerization reactions, orthogonal self-assembly, catalytic nanomotors, Kumada-transfer polycondensation, and stimuli-responsive interfaces.

For more information contact Prof. Bernard Kippelen (404-385-5163).