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Updated: Jan 10, 2026

Controlling the Size, Shape and Stability of Supramolecular Polymers in Water
Published on: August 2, 2012
Multidirectionally Controlled Arrangement via Ion-Pairing Assembly of Amphiphilic Charged π-Electronic Systems
Yuto Maruyama1, Biplab Manna2, Koji Harano2,3
1Department of Applied Chemistry, College of Life Sciences, Kusatsu, 525-8577, Japan.
Abstract:
Charged π-electronic systems with hydrophilic substituents form lyotropic chromonic liquid crystals (LCLCs) through charge-by-charge assembly driven by iπ-iπ interactions and hydrophobic effects. In this study, the positions and numbers of triethylene glycol (TEG) chains in amphiphilic porphyrin AuIII complexes are tuned to control their assembly modes. In combination with the π-electronic anion pentacyanocyclopentadienide (PCCp-), 5,15-TEG-aryl-substituted porphyrin AuIII complex generates lamello-columnar (Lamcol) phases via amphiphilic iπ-iπ interactions and proximal interactions at the unsubstituted sites. In the presence of water, the Lamcol phases, with lateral hydrophobic effects, exhibit transitions to nematic sheet (Nsheet) and isotropic sheet (Isosheet) phases depending on water content and temperature. The Lamcol phases align macroscopically under a magnetic field, and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) reveals monolayer sheet structures as key components of the LCLCs. These findings demonstrate a controllable charge-by-charge strategy for designing π-electronic LCLCs with tunable structural and phase behaviors.
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