CSIR Centre of Excellence in Chemsitry

The Centre works on various aspects of solid state and materials chemistry. The main activities of this CSIR-Centre deal with the following aspects.

• Synthesis and characterization of designer solids (molecular solids) with novel structures and properties, supramolecular chemistry, porous solids having framework structures, crystal growth and Raman & Brillouin scattering.

• Developing new strategies for the synthesis, purification, functionalization and solubilization of nanotubes (multi-walled and single-walled carbon nanotubes, junction nanotubes, core-shell nanostructures such as fullerene encapsulated nanotubes (“peapods”, C₆₀@SWNTs)) to study the electrical transport, optical and other confinement properties.

• Synthesis, characterization and properties of nanotubes and nanowires of various inorganic materials including elements, metal oxides, nitrides, carbides and chalcogenides using new synthetic strategies.

• Synthesis of composites of nanotubes and nanowires with various polymers to enhance their properties for potential applications in mechanical, electronic, sensor and other devices.

• The study mainly in phenomena and properties exhibited by transition metal oxide systems, including high temperature superconductivity, colossal magnetoresistance, metal-insulation transition and multifunctionality.

• Synthesis of metal and semiconductor nanocrystals/nanoparticles in colloidal sols as well as at liquid-liquid interfaces, ligand-shell modification, core-shell nanocrystals, magic nuclearity nanocrystals, mesoscalar assemblies.