Fabrication of a Complex Two-Dimensional Adenine–Perylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic Dianhydride Chiral Nanoarchitecture through Molecular Self-Assembly

Abstract

The two-dimensional self-assembly of a nonsyrnmetric adenine DNA base mixed with symmetric perylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic dianhydride (PTCDA) molecules is investigated using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). We experimentally observe that these two building blocks form a complex close-packed chiral supramolecular network on Au(111). The unit cell of the adenine PTCDA nanoarchitecture is composed of 14 molecules. The high stability of this structure relies on PTCDA-PTCDA and PTCDA-adenine hydrogen bonding. Detailed theoretical analysis based on the density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveals that adenine molecules work as a glue, providing additional strengthening to the PTCDA-based skeleton of this sophisticated multicomponent nanoarchitecture. At the same time, we find that orientation and chirality of adenine molecules across the monolayer is likely to vary, leading to a disorder in the atomistic structure of the entire assembly.