title: Self-assembly of rod-coil molecules into molecular length-dependent organization.
abstract: A series of rod-coil molecules (n-x, where n represents the number of repeating units in a PPO coil and x the number of phenyl groups in a rod segment) with variation in the molecular length, but an identical rod to coil volume ratio was synthesized, and their self-assembling behavior was investigated by using DSC and X-ray scatterings. The molecule with a short rod-coil molecule (16-4) shows a 3-D tetragonal structure based on a body-centered symmetry of the discrete bundles in addition to a lamellar structure. This 3-D lattice, on heating, collapses to generate a disordered micellar structure. Remarkably, the molecules based on longer molecular length (21-5 and 24-6) were observed to self-organize into, on heating, lamellar, tetagonally perforated lamellar, 2-D hexagonal columnar and finally disordered micellar structures. Further increase in the molecular length as in the case of 29-7 and 32-8 induces a 3-D hexagonally perforated lamellar structure as an intermediate structure between the lamellar and tetragonally perforated lamellar structures. Consequently, these systems demonstrate the ability to regulate the domain nanostructure, from 2-dimensionally continuous layers, long strips to discrete bundles via periodic perforated layers by small changes in the molecular length, at an identical rod-to-coil volume fraction.
authors.affiliation: Center for Supramolecular Nano-Assembly and Department of Chemistry, and Yonsei University, Seoul 120-749, Korea.
authors.forename: Ja-Hyoung
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Ryu
authors.forename: Nam-Keun
authors.initials: NK
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Wang-Cheol
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Zin
authors.forename: Myongsoo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lee