title: Synthesis, self-assembly, and switching of one-dimensional nanostructures from new crowded aromatics.
abstract: This study outlines a versatile and expeditious synthesis of the first derivatives of a new class of benzene that is substituted with both three amide and three alkyne substituents. Sparsely covered monolayer films, made through spin-casting, reveal one-dimensional nanostructures that can be visualized with atomic force microscopy. In bulk, synchrotron X-ray diffraction and polarized light microscopy show that these nanostructured columns assemble further into a two-dimensional liquid crystalline phase. The birefringence of this phase can be switched by application of an electric field. The half-time for the liquid crystalline phase to switch is very fast and proportional to the applied voltage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA.
authors.forename: Mark L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Bushey
authors.forename: Thuc-Quyen
authors.initials: TQ
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Colin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nuckolls