Issue 17, 2022

An unprecedented azobenzene-based organic single-component ferroelectric

Abstract

Organic single-component ferroelectrics, as an important class of metal-free ferroelectrics, are highly desirable because of their easy processing, mechanical flexibility, and biocompatibility. However, although nearly 50 years have passed since the discovery of photochromism in azobenzene-doped cholesteric liquid crystals, ferroelectricity has never been found in azobenzene-based crystals. Here, we use an amino group to substitute a fluorine atom of 2,2′,4,4′,6,6′-hexafluoroazobenzene, which successfully introduces ferroelectricity into 2-amino-2′,4,4′,6,6′-pentafluoroazobenzene (APFA). APFA shows an extremely high Curie temperature (Tc) of 443 K, which is outstanding among single-component ferroelectrics. It also exhibits an indirect optical band gap of 2.27 eV as well as photoisomerization behavior between the trans-form and the cis-form triggered by pedal motion. To our knowledge, APFA is the first azobenzene-based ferroelectric crystal. This work opens an avenue to design excellent single-component ferroelectrics and will inspire the exploration of azobenzene-based ferroelectrics for promising applications in biofriendly ferroelectric devices.

Graphical abstract: An unprecedented azobenzene-based organic single-component ferroelectric

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
03 Febr. 2022
Accepted
04 Apr. 2022
First published
05 Apr. 2022
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Chem. Sci., 2022,13, 4936-4943

An unprecedented azobenzene-based organic single-component ferroelectric

H. Peng, J. Qi, X. Song, R. Xiong and W. Liao, Chem. Sci., 2022, 13, 4936 DOI: 10.1039/D2SC00689H

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