Abstract
Cooperative supramolecular polymerization of π-conjugated compounds into one-dimensional nanostructures has received tremendous attentions in recent years. It is commonly achieved by incorporating amide linkages into the monomeric structures, which provide hydrogen bonds for intermolecular non-covalent complexation. Herein, the effect of amide linkages is elaborately studied, by comparing supramolecular polymerization behaviors of two structurally similar monomers with the same platinum(II) acetylide cores. As compared to the N-phenyl benzamide linkages, N-[(1S)-1-phenylethyl] benzamide linkages give rise to effective chirality transfer behaviors due to the closer distances between the chiral units and the platinum(II) acetylide core. They also provide stronger intermolecular hydrogen bonding strength, which consequently brings higher thermo-stability and enhanced gelation capability for the resulting supramolecular polymers. Supramolecular polymerization is further strengthened by varying the monomers from monotopic to ditopic structures. Hence, with the judicious modulation of structural parameters, the current study opens up new avenues for the rational design of supramolecular polymeric systems.
Highlights
By taking advantage of high molecular weight, ease of processability and strong emission properties for these supramolecular polymers, we have further demonstrated their applications in optical waveguide and anti-counterfeiting materials [41,42,43]
According to the previous literature, the former band corresponds to π-π* transition of the chiral N-[(1S)-1-phenylethyl] benzamide moieties [44]
In the circular dichroism (CD) spectrum, a very weak Cotton effect below 330 nm was observed at 323 K, which derives from the intrinsic molecular chirality (Figure 1a)
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Supramolecular polymerization of π-conjugated molecules has become an important way to access dynamic functional materials [1,2,3,4,5,6]. To achieve control over the size and shape of the resulting nanostructures, it is important to elucidate the supramolecular polymerization mechanism. Depending on the energy evolution of the supramolecular polymerization processes, three different types of mechanisms, namely isodesmic, cooperative, and anti-cooperative mechanisms, have been clarified [7,8]. The cooperative supramolecular polymerization mechanism, undergoing an initial nucleation step followed by the energetically favorable elongation stage, prevents the formation of small-sized oligomers commonly encountered in the isodesmic and anti-cooperative mechanisms
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