Tunable Superstructures of Dendronized Graphene Nanoribbons in Liquid Phase

Fugui Xu, Chunyang Yu, Alexander Tries, Heng Zhang, Mathias Kläui, K Basse, Michael Ryan Hansen, Nerea Bilbao, Mischa Bonn, Hai I. Wang, Yiyong Mai*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

32 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

In this Communication, we report the first synthesis of structurally well-defined graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) functionalized with dendritic polymers. The resultant GNRs possess grafting ratios of 0.59–0.68 for the dendrons of different generations. Remarkably, the precise 3D branched conformation of the grafted dendrons affords the GNRs unprecedented 1D supramolecular self-assembly behavior in tetrahydrofuran (THF), yielding nanowires, helices and nanofibers depending on the dimension of the dendrons. The GNR superstructures in THF exhibit near-infrared absorption with maxima between 650 and 700 nm, yielding an optical bandgap of 1.2–1.3 eV. Ultrafast photoconductivity analyses unveil that the helical structures exhibit the longest free carrier (3.5 ps) and exciton lifetime (several hundred ps) among the three superstructure systems. This study opens pathways for tunable construction of ordered GNR superstructures with promising optoelectronic applications.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)10972–10977
Number of pages6
JournalJournal of the American Chemical Society
Volume141
Issue number28
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 17-Jul-2019
Externally publishedYes

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Tunable Superstructures of Dendronized Graphene Nanoribbons in Liquid Phase'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this