Morphological and dimensional control via hierarchical assembly of doped oligoaniline single crystals.
Single crystals of doped aniline oligomers are produced via a simple solution-based self-assembly method. Detailed mechanistic studies reveal that crystals of different morphologies and dimensions can be produced by a "bottom-up" hierarchical assembly where structures such as one-dimensional (1-D) nanofibers can be aggregated into higher order architectures. A large variety of crystalline nanostructures including 1-D nanofibers and nanowires, 2-D nanoribbons and nanosheets, 3-D nanoplates, stacked sheets, nanoflowers, porous networks, hollow spheres, and twisted coils can be obtained by controlling the nucleation of the crystals and the non-covalent interactions between the doped oligomers. These nanoscale crystals exhibit enhanced conductivity compared to their bulk counterparts as well as interesting structure-property relationships such as shape-dependent crystallinity. Furthermore, the morphology and dimension of these structures can be largely rationalized and predicted by monitoring molecule-solvent interactions via absorption studies. Using doped tetraaniline as a model system, the results and strategies presented here provide insight into the general scheme of shape and size control for organic materials.
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 90095-1969, United States.
Yue
Y
Wang
Jinglin
J
Liu
Henry D
HD
Tran
Matthew
M
Mecklenburg
Xin N
XN
Guan
Adam Z
AZ
Stieg
B C
BC
Regan
David C
DC
Martin
Richard B
RB
Kaner