Construction and optoelectronic properties of organic one-dimensional nanostructures

In the last 10 years, nanomaterials based on small organic molecules have attracted increasing attention. Such materials have unique optical and electronic properties, which could lead to new applications in nanoscale devices. Zero-dimensional (0D) organic nanoparticles with amorphous structures have been widely studied; however, the systematic investigation of crystalline one-dimensional (1D) organic nanostructures has only emerged in recent years. Researchers have used inorganic 1D nanomaterials, such as wires, tubes, and belts, as building blocks in optoelectronic nanodevices. We expect that their organic counterparts will also play an important role in this field. Because organic nanomaterials are composed of molecular units with weaker intermolecular interactions, they allow for higher structural tunability, reactivity, and processability. In addition, organic materials usually possess higher luminescence efficiency and can be grown on almost any solid substrate. In this Account, we describe recent progress in our group toward the construction of organic 1D nanomaterials and studies of their unique optical and electronic properties. First, we introduce the techniques for synthesizing 1D organic nanostructures. Because this strategy is both facile and reliable, liquid phase synthesis is most commonly used. More importantly, this method allows researchers to produce composite materials, including core/sheath and uniformly doped structures, which allow to investigate the interactions between different components in the nanomaterials, including fluorescent resonance energy transfer and photoinduced electron transfer. Physical vapor deposition allows for the synthesis of organic 1D nanomaterials with high crystallinity. Nanomaterials produced with this method offer improved charge transport properties and better optoelectronic performance in areas including multicolor emission, tunable emission, optical waveguide, and lasing. Although inorganic nanomaterials have developed rapidly, our findings highlight the importance of organic compounds as components of novel 1D nanomaterials.