- Developing next-generation MEAs for electrochemical energy application

- Development of membrane-electrode-assemblies (MEAs) for electrochemical energy converters such as PEM fuel cells, water electrolyzers and redox-flow batteries - Mechanical reinforcement of proton-exchange membranes- 2 Patents in the field of electrochemical energy converters- 6 Publications in peer-reviewed journals

Key Achievements:i. Improvement of solar cell voltage and thereby performance by side-chain engineering of conjugated polymers.ii. Important contribution to the discussion of incorporation of branching defect structures during Direct Arylation Polycondensation.iii. Improving and controlling luminescence of the high-performance copolymer PCDTBT via side-chain induced torsion- 2 First Author publications in peer-reviewed high-ranking journals - Continuation of the PhD project; initiation and supervision of follow-up projects- One-to-one Supervision of Master and PhD students- Reviewing activity for various journals

Polymer Chemistry and Physics of Optoelectronic Materials, Organic ElectronicsKey Achievements:i. In-depth analysis of conjugated polymer backbone defect structures and their negative impact on photovoltaic performance. Synthesis of defect-free semiconducting polymers and the demonstration of their superior performance.ii. Compatibilization of all-conjugated polymer/polymer blends with all-conjugated block copolymers for photovoltaic applications including the synthesis of side-chain fluorinated all-conjugated block copolymers.iii. First demonstration of identifying homocoupling reactions as critical side-reactions during Direct Arylation Polycondensation. - 6 First Author and 6 Co-author publications in peer-reviewed high-ranking journals - One-to-one supervision of 11 students at the Bachelor, Master and even PhD level and their degree theses; one final year undergraduate student awarded with prize for best project of the term- Multistep-synthesis of functionalized conjugated monomers- Fabrication and in-depth characterization of solution processed multilayer Organic Photovoltaic Devices and Organic Light-Emitting Diodes

In collaboration with the Optoelectronics Group in Cambridge, UK, I synthesized organic semiconductors for solar cell applications and light-emitting devices in the Department for Macromolecular Chemistry in Freiburg, Germany

Work with Organic Semiconductors- Synthesis and characterization of highly fluorescent organic materials for OFET- and OLED-application- Chemical structure elucidation of products via multinuclear and multidimensional NMR spectroscopy- Measurement and calculation of energy levels- Aging/Photobleaching Tests- Schlenk-technique and Glovebox experience- Postulation of underlying reaction mechanisms- 2 Co-Author publications in peer-reviewed high-ranking journals

Internship at the Department for Photochemistry and Molecular Sciences.Work in the consortium on Artificial Photosynthesis.Synthesis of Ruthenium-complexes for light-harvesting applications- First preparation of a cyclo-metallated Ruthenium complex with optimized octahedral geometry- Fabrication of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells- 2 Co-Author publications in peer-reviewed high-ranking journals