Reviewed by Lexie CornerJan 13 2025
In a study published in Advanced Materials, Biwu Ma, a Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Florida State University, and his team how zero-dimensional (0D) organic metal halide hybrids (OMHHs) can be combined with metal halide perovskites to create high-performance white light-emitting diodes (LEDs).
Different shapes of an organic metal halide hybrid prepared by Ma’s team appear under ambient and ultraviolet light. Image Credit: Biwu Ma
Advances in materials science continuously enhance technologies such as X-ray machines, computers, cell phones, and televisions. Researchers at Florida State University are contributing to these advancements by developing innovative, cost-effective, and environmentally sustainable materials for such applications.
Biwu Ma and his lab have spent years studying hybrid materials, specifically OMHHs. These materials combine organic molecules with metal halide units, forming structures with tunable properties for applications in solar cells, LEDs, and other devices. This fall, their research on various aspects of OMHHs was featured in three scientific journals.
Our group is widely recognized as a pioneer in the development of this new class of hybrid materials known as organic metal halide hybrids, or OMHHs. What is fascinating about these materials is their exceptional structure and property tunability—much like assembling Lego pieces, we can combine organic and metal halide building blocks in countless ways to produce materials with all kinds of functionalities for use in various industries.
Biwu Ma, Professor, Florida State University
To produce white light, the researchers combined two emissive layers of materials—one emitting blue light and the other emitting orange and red light.
In addition to their role in LEDs, 0D OMHHs can convert high-energy radiation, such as X-rays, into visible light. This property makes them well-suited for use in X-ray scintillators, which are critical in applications like medical imaging, security screening, and industrial chemical testing. Scintillators, used in dental imaging and airport security, are traditionally made from inorganic materials that require costly, high-temperature, and high-pressure fabrication processes.
In 2020, Ma’s group became the first to demonstrate the use of low-cost, environmentally friendly 0D OMHHs for X-ray scintillators, positioning them as leaders in advancing this technology. The National Science Foundation has supported the team’s work on LEDs, leading to over a dozen high-impact publications and the successful mentoring of several doctoral students.
Biwu is a high-impact chemist, and what he’s accomplished in his career so far is amazing. He is world-renowned not only for designing materials with ‘dream’ properties but also for developing novel concepts and guiding the field of materials design with his work.
Wei Yang, Chair, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida State University
Another study, published in Advanced Functional Materials in September, demonstrated that a novel type of 0D OMHH, in the form of solution-treated amorphous films, can be used to fabricate large-area X-ray scintillators. Previously, most 0D OMHH-based scintillators relied on solution-grown single crystals, which are time-intensive to produce and limited in size. Ma's team took advantage of the amorphous nature of OMHHs to develop high-performance, solution-processable scintillators.
The team is collaborating with academic institutions to explore potential applications in radiation therapy and photon-counting computed tomography, a medical imaging technique. Additionally, they are working with industrial partners to develop 0D OMHH-based scintillators, which can be produced cost-effectively using Earth-abundant and non-toxic elements.
Yang added, “Biwu is unusually creative—his ideas are embedded with exceptional insights. His students say that while Biwu’s ideas seem unbelievable at first, they always work so well. The department has put tremendous effort into faculty development and observed the growth of incredible scientists to become forefront scholars in their respective research areas, and Biwu is a shining example.”
Ma's group collaborated with researchers from the University at Buffalo and Los Alamos National Laboratory to explore the application of 0D OMHHs in direct X-ray detectors, as reported in a November article in ACS Energy Letters. These detectors convert X-rays into electrical signals and are widely used in security screening and medical imaging.
Traditional direct X-ray detectors rely on materials such as silicon and selenium, which face challenges related to cost, performance, and adaptability. While materials like metal halide perovskites have shown potential for improving X-ray detection, issues with toxicity and instability have limited their widespread adoption.
The team demonstrated that 0D OMHHs offer an eco-friendly, cost-effective alternative with key advantages, including high sensitivity, low detection limits, and excellent stability. These properties make 0D OMHHs a promising option for applications ranging from medical diagnostics and imaging to security and scientific research.
Ma has submitted a U.S. patent application for OMHH-based direct X-ray detectors and is seeking grant funding in collaboration with academic and industrial partners to advance the technology further.
This research aligns with the $6 million NSF-funded Inspiring the Generation of New Ideas and Translational Excellence (IGNITE-FSU) program, launched in 2024. IGNITE-FSU provides training and resources for the Florida State University and Tallahassee communities, including entrepreneurial mentoring, seed funding for translational research, and partnerships to foster an innovation ecosystem.
Ma received one of IGNITE-FSU’s initial Seed Translational Research Project awards, designed to accelerate research initiatives with the potential for groundbreaking discoveries.
Ma concluded, “Since our first paper on these materials in 2017, we have continuously explored new compositions, structures, properties, functionalities, and applications, and our work spans a broad spectrum. We see 0D OMHHs as an incredibly versatile material platform with the tremendous potential to outperform existing materials in numerous applications.”
Journal References:
Liu, H. et al. (2024) Solution Processed Bilayer Metal Halide White Light Emitting Diodes. Advanced Materials. doi.org/10.1002/adma.202412239
Manny, T. F. et al. (2024) Efficient X-Ray Scintillators Based on Facile Solution Processed 0D Organic Manganese Bromide Hybrid Films. Advanced Functional Materials. doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202413755
Olasupo, O. J. et al. (2024) Direct X-ray Detectors Based on an Eco-Friendly Semiconducting Zero-Dimensional Organic Zinc Bromide Hybrid. ACS Energy Letters. doi.org/10.1021/acsenergylett.4c02662