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Updated: Jul 9, 2026
07:37
Preparation of Macroporous Epitaxial Quartz Films on Silicon by Chemical Solution Deposition
Published on: December 21, 2015
Quartz-Like Supramolecular Glass Enabled by Host-Guest Size Mismatch.
Jianfeng Jia1, Yi Su1, Gang Ye1
1Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Nuclear Energy Technology, Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
Advanced Materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)
|July 8, 2026
Summary
Researchers developed a new supramolecular glass using saturated molecules, overcoming the trade-off between UV transparency and mechanical strength. This "quartz-like" material offers high durability and optical clarity.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Supramolecular Chemistry
- Polymer Science
Background:
- Supramolecular glasses traditionally face a trade-off between mechanical strength and deep-ultraviolet (UV) transparency.
- This limitation stems from the common use of aromatic building blocks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To overcome the mechanical robustness vs. deep-UV transparency trade-off in supramolecular glasses.
- To engineer a novel supramolecular glass with enhanced optical and mechanical properties.
Main Methods:
- Assembly of supramolecular glass using fully saturated aliphatic macrocycles and lithium salts.
- Utilized a host-guest size mismatch strategy to induce conformational frustration.
- Crystallographic elucidation to understand the mechanism of kinetic suppression of crystallization.
Main Results:
- Developed a "quartz-like" supramolecular glass with fused-silica-like transparency (>95%) from deep-UV to near-infrared.
- Achieved a high Young's modulus of ~4.85 GPa, dynamic regenerative repair, and robust interfacial adhesion.
- Demonstrated exceptional stability against high-intensity UV and gamma-ray radiation.
Conclusions:
- Established mismatch-induced frustration as a framework for engineering optically silent supramolecular materials.
- Decoupled mechanical strength from optical bandgap in supramolecular glasses.
- The new material resolves the conflict between robustness and transparency for advanced applications.
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