Bottom-up assembly of molecular wagons on a surface

The bottom-up assembly of molecular building blocks, carrying specific functions, is a promising strategy for the construction of nanomachines. In this study we show how molecules with a mechanical function, i.e., being equipped with wheels, can be connected in a controlled way directly on a surface. By choosing suitable building blocks, assembled dimers and wagon trains can be formed, whereas the length of the chains can be limited by using a heterogeneous mixture of molecules. By using low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy, the chemical nature of the intermolecular connection is determined as a metal-ligand bond, which is stable enough to maintain the wagon train structure at room temperature. The intermolecular bonds can be controllably changed from trans to cis configurations thereby achieving bond angles of almost 90°.     

Solution-phase synthesis of heteroatom-substituted carbon scaffolds for hydrogen storage

This paper reports a bottom-up solution-phase process for the preparation of pristine and heteroatom (boron, phosphorus, or nitrogen)-substituted carbon scaffolds that show good surface areas and enhanced hydrogen adsorption capacities and binding energies. The synthesis method involves heating chlorine-containing small organic molecules with metallic sodium at reflux in high-boiling solvents. For heteroatom incorporation, heteroatomic electrophiles are added to the reaction mixture. Under the reaction conditions, micrometer-sized graphitic sheets assembled by 3-5 nm-sized domains of graphene nanoflakes are formed, and when they are heteroatom-substituted, the heteroatoms are uniformly distributed. The substituted carbon scaffolds enriched with heteroatoms (boron ～7.3%, phosphorus ～8.1%, and nitrogen ～28.1%) had surface areas as high as 900 m(2) g(-1) and enhanced reversible hydrogen physisorption capacities relative to pristine carbon scaffolds or common carbonaceous materials. In addition, the binding energies of the substituted carbon scaffolds, as measured by adsorption isotherms, were 8.6, 8.3, and 5.6 kJ mol(-1) for the boron-, phosphorus-, and nitrogen-enriched carbon scaffolds, respectively.     

Highly water soluble multi-layer graphene nanoribbons and related honey-comb carbon nanostructures

Multi-layer graphene nanoribbons have been made highly water soluble (4.7 mg ml(-1)) and stable for the first time by repetitious derivatization with p-carboxyphenyldiazonium salt; similarly, single-walled carbon nanotubes (4.8 mg ml(-1)) and ultra-short carbon nanotubes (50 mg ml(-1)) can also be made highly soluble by the methodology.     

Facile synthesis of multifullerene-OPE hybrids via in situ ethynylation

[reaction: see text] A series of fullerene-terminated oligo(phenylene ethynylene)s (OPEs) (1a-d and 2) have been synthesized and further characterized by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and UV-vis spectroscopy. The key step in the syntheses is an effective one-pot reaction that allows the attachment of C(60) to multiple terminal alkynes.     

Design of a nonreductive method for chemoselective cleavage of hydrazines in the presence of unsaturations: application to a stereoconvergent three-component synthesis of (-)-methyl palustramate

A chemoselective hydrazine (N-N) cleavage methodology that preserves the integrity of alkenes was developed based on a mild acid-promoted fragmentation of tetrasubstituted 1-(trimethylsilylmethyl)-1-benzylhydrazines. This strategy was applied to a concise asymmetric synthesis of (-)-methyl palustramate (4), which featured a convergent stereo- and regioselective sequential three-component aza[4+2]cycloaddition/allylboration/retro-sulfinyl-ene rearrangement between diene 1f, dienophile 2b, and propionaldehyde to afford cis-2-carboxy-6-hydroxyalkylpiperidine 25. The acid-promoted hydrazinolysis of 25 cleanly afforded key intermediate 31, and the latter led to target 4 in four steps after a series of functional group transformations.     

Valence electron orbitals of an oligo(p-phenylene-ethynylene)thiol on gold

This communication reports measurement of one-photon (21.2 eV) and one-color, two-photon (3.2-4.5 eV) photoemission spectra of 4,4'-bis-(phenylethynyl)benzenethiol chemisorbed on gold. Four features are observed in these spectra: two occupied, predominantly molecular levels below the Fermi level and two unoccupied, predominantly molecular levels above the Fermi level. The occupied and unoccupied bands closest to the Fermi level are assigned to delocalized pi-bands, and the other occupied and unoccupied bands, to localized pi-bands. With this assignment, the hole- and electron-injection barriers and the transport gap for those levels are deduced.     

En route to surface-bound electric field-driven molecular motors

Four caltrop-shaped molecules that might be useful as surface-bound electric field-driven molecular motors have been synthesized. The caltrops are comprised of a pair of electron donor-acceptor arms and a tripod base. The molecular arms are based on a carbazole or oligo(phenylene ethynylene) core with a strong net dipole. The tripod base uses a silicon atom as its core. The legs of the tripod bear sulfur-tipped bonding units, as acetyl-protected benzylic thiols, for bonding to a gold surface. The geometry of the tripod base allows the caltrop to project upward from a metallic surface after self-assembly. Ellipsometric studies show that self-assembled monolayers of the caltrops are formed on Au surfaces with molecular thicknesses consistent with the desired upright-shaft arrangement. As a result, the zwitterionic molecular arms might be controllable when electric fields are applied around the caltrops, thereby constituting field-driven motors.     

Daily doses of biologically active UV radiation retrieved from commonly available parameters

A multiple linear correlation is done between atmospheric transmissivity for four biologically active radiation daily doses (UVB, erythemal, DNA and plant damage) T, and three parameters (daily sunshine fraction σ, cosine of the daily minimum solar zenith angle μ_min and daily total ozone column Ω). T is defined as the ratio of a daily dose to its extra‐atmospheric value. The data used are spectral UV measurements (390–400 nm at 0.5 nm step) recorded along year 2000 and over 8 months of year 2001 at Briançon Station (Alps, 1300 m above sea level) that forms part of the French UV network. The coefficients obtained from year 2000 correlation permit to retrieve daily doses for year 2001 with an average error running from 3 to 9% for monthly mean values and from 2 to 4.5% for 3‐monthly mean values, depending on daily dose type. The retrieval of yearly mean value gives an error between 4 and 7.5%. Retrieving the daily dose of a given day, where σ≥ 0.2, introduces error running from 16 to 32% depending on daily dose. An attempt to retrieve the yearly mean UVB daily dose for a northern France site, from the previous coefficients, gives encouraging results.     

Control of alkanethiolate monolayer structure using vapor-phase annealing

We describe an annealing procedure for self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) that uses vapor-phase molecules to modify the local domain structure. Existing SAMs of decanethiolate on Au{111} were annealed using vapor-phase dodecanethiol molecules, so that the original and newly introduced molecules could be distinguished using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Molecules deposited from the vapor phase inserted at existing monolayer defect sites and domain boundaries, and at substrate step edges forming discrete network-like domains. The SAM molecular lattice can be preserved across molecular terrace boundaries between the decanethiolate and dodecanethiolate domains. Candidate molecular electronic component molecules were inserted from solution in the decanethiolate matrix as isolated molecules. These inserted molecules could then be surrounded by dodecanethiolate molecules introduced from the vapor phase, thus demonstrating a method for controlling the local environment of inserted molecules.     

Functionalization of carbon nanotubes by electrochemical reduction of aryl diazonium salts: a bucky paper electrode.

Small-diameter (ca. 0.7 nm) single-wall carbon nanotubes are predicted to display enhanced reactivity relative to larger-diameter nanotubes due to increased curvature strain. The derivatization of these small-diameter nanotubes via electrochemical reduction of a variety of aryl diazonium salts is described. The estimated degree of functionalization is as high as one out of every 20 carbons in the nanotubes bearing a functionalized moiety. The functionalizing moieties can be removed by heating in an argon atmosphere. Nanotubes derivatized with a 4-tert-butylbenzene moiety were found to possess significantly improved solubility in organic solvents. Functionalization of the nanotubes with a molecular system that has exhibited switching and memory behavior is shown. This represents the marriage of wire-like nanotubes with molecular electronic devices.