Ion Dynamics in Ionic Liquids Polymerized <i>in situ</i> within Silica Nanopores

Polymerized ionic liquids are a promising class of versatile solid-state electrolytes for applications ranging from electrochemical energy storage to flexible smart materials that remain limited by their relatively low ionic conductivities compared to conventional electrolytes. In this talk, we will show that the in-situ polymerization of the vinyl cationic monomer, 1-ethyl-3-vinylimidazolium with the bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide counter anion, under nanoconfinement within 7.5 (± 1.0) nm diameter nanopores results in a nearly 1000-fold enhancement in the ionic conductivity compared to the material polymerized in bulk. Using insights from broadband dielectric and Raman spectroscopic techniques, we attribute these results to the role of confinement on molecular conformations, ion coordination, and, subsequently, the ionic conductivity in the polymerized ionic liquid. These results contribute to the understanding of the dynamics of nanoconfined molecules and show that in-situ polymerization under nanoscale geometric confinement is a promising path towards enhancing ion conductivity in polymer electrolytes.