Edward Neal, MANA Postdoctoral Researcher and Takashi Nakanishi, Group Leader have succeeded in creating various self-assembled nanostructures by taking advantage of the hydrophobic amphiphilic (van der Waals vs. π-π interactions) structure of alkyl chains bearing Fullerene-C₆₀.

As functional materials produced from the created structures, we have discovered superhydrophobic surfaces, photovoltaic liquid crystals, and room-temperature fullerene liquids. The proposed “alkyl-π engineering” methodology is applicable to various π-conjugated dye molecules, too. For example, alkylated porphyrins can form a room-temperature liquid state and are utilized as a liquid electret to be fabricated into a freely-deformable, stretchable vibration power generator.

Their research was selected as the inside front cover of the journal "Bulletin of the Chemical Society of Japan".

Paper details

Title : "Alkyl-Fullerene Materials of Tunable Morphology and Function"
Authors : Edward Neal, and Takashi Nakanishi
Journal : Bulletin of the Chemical Society of Japan, Vol.94, No.6, 1769-1788 (2021)
DOI: 10.1246/bcsj.20210129

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