Temperature‐Enhanced Solvent Vapor Annealing of a C3 Symmetric Hexa‐peri‐Hexabenzocoronene: Controlling the Self‐Assembly from Nano‐ to Macroscale |
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Authors: | Emanuele Treossi Andrea Liscio Xinliang Feng Vincenzo Palermo Klaus Müllen Paolo Samorì |
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Affiliation: | 1. Istituto per la Sintesi Organica e la Fotoreattività Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche via Gobetti 101, 40129 Bologna (Italy);2. Max‐Planck Institute for Polymer Research Ackermannweg 10, 55124 Mainz (Germany);3. Nanochemistry Laboratory, ISIS–CNRS 7006 Université Louis Pasteur 8 Allée Gaspard Monge, 67083 Strasbourg (France) |
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Abstract: | Temperature‐enhanced solvent vapor annealing (TESVA) is used to self‐assemble functionalized polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon molecules into ordered macroscopic layers and crystals on solid surfaces. A novel C3 symmetric hexa‐peri‐hexabenzocoronene functionalized with alternating hydrophilic and hydrophobic side chains is used as a model system since its multivalent character can be expected to offer unique self‐assembly properties and behavior in different solvents. TESVA promotes the molecule's long‐range mobility, as proven by their diffusion on a Si/SiOx surface on a scale of hundreds of micrometers. This leads to self‐assembly into large, ordered crystals featuring an edge‐on columnar type of arrangement, which differs from the morphologies obtained using conventional solution‐processing methods such as spin‐coating or drop‐casting. The temperature modulation in the TESVA makes it possible to achieve an additional control over the role of hydrodynamic forces in the self‐assembly at surfaces, leading to a macroscopic self‐healing within the adsorbed film notably improved as compared to conventional solvent vapor annealing. This surface re‐organization can be monitored in real time by optical and atomic force microscopy. |
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Keywords: | annealing nanocrystals scanning probe microscopy self‐assembly thin layers |
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