Issue 27, 2021

Self-assembly of propeller-shaped amphiphilic molecules: control over the supramolecular morphology and photoproperties of their aggregates

Abstract

The aggregation-induced emission (AIE) effect is an important feature for luminescence studies, which can offer a broader range of applications for fluorescent materials. Herein, we report the morphological control and photoproperties of amphipathic propeller-shaped rod–coil molecules based on a benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamide (BTA) unit, which restricts the intramolecular rotation and leads to the AIE effect during the self-assembly process. Investigations on the assembly of these molecules have revealed that tetragonal perforated lamella, hexagonal columnar, body-centered tetragonal micellar, and hexagonal close-packed nanostructures were spontaneously formed in the solid-state. In the solution-state, these molecules assemble into nanosheet-like aggregates, bowl-like objects, and spherical nanoparticles, respectively. The morphology of the molecular aggregates can be controlled by modifying the molecular chain length or introducing lateral methyl groups in the coil chain. Notably, these molecular assemblies exhibit strong AIE phenomena in a mixed THF/H2O solution and can be used as smart soft materials due to the restriction of their intramolecular motion.

Graphical abstract: Self-assembly of propeller-shaped amphiphilic molecules: control over the supramolecular morphology and photoproperties of their aggregates

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
05 May 2021
Accepted
16 Jun 2021
First published
16 Jun 2021

Soft Matter, 2021,17, 6661-6668

Self-assembly of propeller-shaped amphiphilic molecules: control over the supramolecular morphology and photoproperties of their aggregates

N. Ye, Y. Pei, Q. Han, M. Lee and L. Y. Jin, Soft Matter, 2021, 17, 6661 DOI: 10.1039/D1SM00661D

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements