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Self-assembly of porphyrin nanostructures at the interface between two immiscible liquids
- Source :
- The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, Journal of Physical Chemistry C, Journal of Physical Chemistry C, American Chemical Society, 2020, ⟨10.1021/acs.jpcc.0c00437⟩
- Publication Year :
- 2020
- Publisher :
- American Chemical Society, 2020.
-
Abstract
- peer-reviewed The full text of this article will not be available in ULIR until the embargo expires on the 06/03/2021 One of the many evolved functions of photosynthetic organisms is to synthesize light harvesting nanostructures from photoactive molecules such as porphyrins. Engineering synthetic analogues with optimized molecular order necessary for the efficient capture and harvest of light energy remains challenging. Here, we address this challenge by reporting the self-assembly of zinc(II) meso-tetrakis(4-carboxyphenyl)porphyrins into films of highly ordered nanostructures. The self-assembly process takes place selectively at the interface between two immiscible liquids (water|organic solvent), with kinetically stable interfacial nanostructures formed only at pH values close to the pKa of the carboxyphenyl groups. Molecular dynamics simulations suggest that the assembly process is driven by an interplay between the hydrophobicity gradient at the interface and hydrogen bonding in the formed nanostructure. Ex situ XRD analysis and in situ UV/vis and steady state fluorescence indicates the formation of chlathrate type nanostructures that retain the emission properties of their monomeric constituents. The self-assembly method presented here avoids the use of acidic conditions, additives such as surfactants and external stimuli, offering an alternative for the realization of light-harvesting antennas in artificial photosynthesis technologies.
- Subjects :
- Materials science
Nanostructure
Porphyrins
soft interface
Interface (Java)
engineering
Nanotechnology
02 engineering and technology
010402 general chemistry
01 natural sciences
chemistry.chemical_compound
interface between two immiscible liquids
Light energy
Energy transformation
Molecule
molecular antennas
Physical and Theoretical Chemistry
ComputingMilieux_MISCELLANEOUS
Light-harvesting antennas
Artificial photosynthesis technologies
self-assembly
[CHIM.MATE]Chemical Sciences/Material chemistry
Self-assembly
021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology
Porphyrin
Energy conversion
0104 chemical sciences
Surfaces, Coatings and Films
Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
Nanostructures
[CHIM.THEO]Chemical Sciences/Theoretical and/or physical chemistry
General Energy
chemistry
X-ray crystallography
0210 nano-technology
porphyrin nanostructures
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 19327447 and 19327455
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, Journal of Physical Chemistry C, Journal of Physical Chemistry C, American Chemical Society, 2020, ⟨10.1021/acs.jpcc.0c00437⟩
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....541023eac179d496aca6b635b470a210
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpcc.0c00437⟩