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Epitaxial Supramolecular Assembly of Fullerenes Formed by Using a Coronene Template on a Au(111) Surface in Solution
journal contribution
posted on 2007-04-11, 00:00 authored by Soichiro Yoshimoto, Eishi Tsutsumi, Ryuji Narita, Yasujiro Murata, Michihisa Murata, Koichi Fujiwara, Koichi Komatsu, Osamu Ito, Kingo ItayaCharacteristic properties of the coronene layer formed on Au(111) for the epitaxial growth of
various fullerenes are described. The electrochemical behavior of the coronene adlayer prepared by
immersing a Au(111) substrate into a benzene solution containing coronene was investigated in 0.1 M
HClO4. The as-prepared coronene adlayer on Au(111) revealed a well-defined (4 × 4) structure. Structural
changes of the array of coronene molecules induced by potential manipulation were clearly observed by
in situ scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Supramolecularly assembled layers of fullerenes such as
C60, C70, C60−C60 dumbbell dimer (C120), C60−C70 cross-dimer (C130), and C60 triangle trimer (C180) were
formed on the well-defined coronene adlayer on the Au(111) surface by immersing the coronene-adsorbed
Au(111) substrate into benzene solutions containing those molecules. The adlayers thus prepared were
characterized by comparison with those which were directly attached to the Au(111) surface. The C60
molecules formed a honeycomb array with an internal structure in each C60 cage on the coronene adlayer,
whereas C70 molecules were one-dimensionally arranged with the same orientations. The dimers, C120
and C130 molecules, formed an identical structure with c(11 × 4√3)rect symmetry. For the C130 cross-dimer molecule, C60 and C70 cages were clearly recognized at the molecular level. It was difficult to identify
the adlayer of the C180 molecule directly attached to Au(111); however, individual C180 molecules could be
recognized on the coronene-modified Au(111) surface. Thus, the adlayer structures of those fullerenes
were strongly influenced by the underlying coronene adlayer, suggesting that the insertion of a coronene
adlayer plays an important role in the formation of supramolecular assemblies of fullerenes.