Self-templating polythiophene derivatives: electronic decoupling of conjugated strands through staggered packing

Langmuir. 2011 Aug 16;27(16):10251-5. doi: 10.1021/la201743d. Epub 2011 Jul 21.

Abstract

Whereas molecular electronics needs well-controlled 3D geometries for decoupling or interconnecting individual molecules, conjugated polymers form disordered structures when deposited on a substrate. We show that this trend can be overcome in polythiophene derivatives designed so as to exploit weak sulfur-bromine interactions. A self-template effect follows, leading to staggered organizations of well-aligned electronically decoupled conjugated strands, as observed in situ by scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy on graphite.