Compact Hydrogen-Bonded Self-Assembly of Ni(II)–Salen Derivative Investigated Using Scanning Tunneling Microscopy

The self-assembly of a Ni­(II)–salen-derived complex bearing benzoate groups is investigated using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) at the solid/liquid interface. STM reveals that the molecules form a two-dimensional nanoarchitecture of close-packed hydrogen-bonded chains on graphite surface. Favorable salen chain-shaped complementarity and molecular dipolar interactions appear to be at the origin of the compact molecular chain-packing.