AI Article Synopsis
- Researchers have developed a method to create large-scale patterned surfaces (up to square millimeters) using a combination of self-assembly of porphyrin dyes and physical dewetting.
- The resulting patterns feature closely spaced (0.5 to 1 micrometer apart) lines that are only 5 nanometers wide, made up of millions of molecules.
- On glass surfaces, the method yields thicker lines that can effectively align liquid crystals across extensive areas, enhancing potential technological applications.
Article Abstract
The use of bottom-up approaches to construct patterned surfaces for technological applications is appealing, but to date is applicable to only relatively small areas (approximately 10 square micrometers). We constructed highly periodic patterns at macroscopic length scales, in the range of square millimeters, by combining self-assembly of disk-like porphyrin dyes with physical dewetting phenomena. The patterns consisted of equidistant 5-nanometer-wide lines spaced 0.5 to 1 micrometers apart, forming single porphyrin stacks containing millions of molecules, and were formed spontaneously upon drop-casting a solution of the molecules onto a mica surface. On glass, thicker lines are formed, which can be used to align liquid crystals in large domains of square millimeter size.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1133004 | DOI Listing |
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