Two-dimensional rigid molecular network with elastic boundaries for constructing hybrid molecular assemblies

Abstract

The star-shaped molecule, 2,6,10-trihexyloxy-3,7,11-tris[3,4,5-tris(dodecyloxy)benzoyloxy]triphenylene (sym) was used as the building unit for constructing porous molecular networks with large cavities. It has been identified that a variety of guest molecules (such as C₆₀, phthalocyanine and substituted phthalocyanine) can be dispersed in this template to form supramolecular architectures, which were also studied by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). It is interesting to observe that this template has elastic boundaries and rigid structures, which can accommodate different amounts of guest species by interacting with them, while keeping the size of cavities invariable.