William R. Dichtel

Oriented 2D Covalent Organic Framework Thin Films on Single-Layer Graphene

Microporous covalent organic frameworks, which usually form as insoluble powders, grow as crystalline films on graphene. Covalent organic frameworks (COFs), in which molecular building blocks form robust microporous networks, are usually synthesized as insoluble and unprocessable powders. We have grown two-dimensional (2D) COF films on single-layer graphene (SLG) under operationally simple solvothermal conditions. The layered films stack normal to the SLG surface and show improved crystallinity compared with COF powders. We used SLG surfaces supported on copper, silicon carbide, and transparent fused silica (SiO2) substrates, enabling optical spectroscopy of COFs in transmission mode. Three chemically distinct COF films grown on SLG exhibit similar vertical alignment and long-range order, and two of these are of interest for organic electronic devices for which thin-film formation is a prerequisite for characterizing their optoelectronic properties.

Enzyme-Responsive Snap-Top Covered Silica Nanocontainers

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles, capable of storing a payload of small molecules and releasing it following specific catalytic activation by an esterase, have been designed and fabricated. The storage and release of the payload is controlled by the presence of [2]rotaxanes, which consist of tri(ethylene glycol) chains threaded by α-cyclodextrin tori, located on the surfaces of the nanoparticles and terminated by a large stoppering group. These modified silica nanoparticles are capable of encapsulating guest molecules when the [2]rotaxanes are present. The bulky stoppers, which serve to hold the tori in place, are stable under physiological conditions but are cleaved by the catalytic action of an enzyme, causing dethreading of the tori and release of the guest molecules from the pores of the nanoparticles. These snap-top covered silica nanocontainers (SCSNs) are prepared by a modular synthetic method, in which the stoppering unit, incorporated in the final step of the synthesis, may be changed at will to target the response of the system to any of a number of hydrolytic enzymes. Here, the design, synthesis, and operation of model SCSNs that open in the presence of porcine liver esterase (PLE) are reported. The empty pores of the silica nanoparticles were loaded with luminescent dye molecules (rhodamine B), and stoppering units that incorporate adamantyl ester moieties were then attached in the presence of α-cyclodextrin using the copper-catalyzed azide−alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC), closing the SCSNs. The release of rhodamine-B from the pores of the SCSN, following PLE-mediated hydrolysis of the stoppers, was monitored using fluorescence spectroscopy.

Rationally synthesized two-dimensional polymers

Synthetic polymers exhibit diverse and useful properties and influence most aspects of modern life. Many polymerization methods provide linear or branched macromolecules, frequently with outstanding functional-group tolerance and molecular weight control. In contrast, extending polymerization strategies to two-dimensional periodic structures is in its infancy, and successful examples have emerged only recently through molecular framework, surface science and crystal engineering approaches. In this Review, we describe successful 2D polymerization strategies, as well as seminal research that inspired their development. These methods include the synthesis of 2D covalent organic frameworks as layered crystals and thin films, surface-mediated polymerization of polyfunctional monomers, and solid-state topochemical polymerizations. Early application targets of 2D polymers include gas separation and storage, optoelectronic devices and membranes, each of which might benefit from predictable long-range molecular organization inherent to this macromolecular architecture.

Lewis acid-catalysed formation of two-dimensional phthalocyanine covalent organic frameworks

Covalent organic frameworks (COFs) offer a new strategy for assembling organic semiconductors into robust networks with atomic precision and long-range order. General methods for COF synthesis will allow complex building blocks to be incorporated into these emerging materials. Here we report a new Lewis acid-catalysed protocol to form boronate esters directly from protected catechols and arylboronic acids. This transformation also provides crystalline boronate ester-linked COFs from protected polyfunctional catechols and bis(boronic acids). Using this method, we prepared a new COF that features a square lattice composed of phthalocyanine macrocycles joined by phenylene bis(boronic acid) linkers. The phthalocyanines stack in an eclipsed fashion within the COF to form 2.3 nm pores that run parallel to the stacked chromophores. The materials broad absorbance over the solar spectrum, potential for efficient charge transport through the stacked phthalocyanines, good thermal stability and the modular nature of COF synthesis, show strong promise for applications in organic photovoltaic devices.

Rapid removal of organic micropollutants from water by a porous β-cyclodextrin polymer.

The global occurrence in water resources of organic micropollutants, such as pesticides and pharmaceuticals, has raised concerns about potential negative effects on aquatic ecosystems and human health. Activated carbons are the most widespread adsorbent materials used to remove organic pollutants from water but they have several deficiencies, including slow pollutant uptake (of the order of hours) and poor removal of many relatively hydrophilic micropollutants. Furthermore, regenerating spent activated carbon is energy intensive (requiring heating to 500–900 degrees Celsius) and does not fully restore performance. Insoluble polymers of β-cyclodextrin, an inexpensive, sustainably produced macrocycle of glucose, are likewise of interest for removing micropollutants from water by means of adsorption. β-cyclodextrin is known to encapsulate pollutants to form well-defined host–guest complexes, but until now cross-linked β-cyclodextrin polymers have had low surface areas and poor removal performance compared to conventional activated carbons. Here we crosslink β-cyclodextrin with rigid aromatic groups, providing a high-surface-area, mesoporous polymer of β-cyclodextrin. It rapidly sequesters a variety of organic micropollutants with adsorption rate constants 15 to 200 times greater than those of activated carbons and non-porous β-cyclodextrin adsorbent materials. In addition, the polymer can be regenerated several times using a mild washing procedure with no loss in performance. Finally, the polymer outperformed a leading activated carbon for the rapid removal of a complex mixture of organic micropollutants at environmentally relevant concentrations. These findings demonstrate the promise of porous cyclodextrin-based polymers for rapid, flow-through water treatment.

β-Ketoenamine-Linked Covalent Organic Frameworks Capable of Pseudocapacitive Energy Storage

Two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (2D COFs) are candidate materials for charge storage devices because of their micro- or mesoporosity, high surface area, and ability to predictably organize redox-active groups. The limited chemical and oxidative stability of established COF linkages, such as boroxines and boronate esters, precludes these applications, and no 2D COF has demonstrated reversible redox behavior. Here we describe a β-ketoenamine-linked 2D COF that exhibits reversible electrochemical processes of its anthraquinone subunits, excellent chemical stability to a strongly acidic electrolyte, and one of the highest surface areas of the imine- or enamine-linked 2D COFs. Electrodes modified with the redox-active COF show higher capacitance than those modified with a similar non-redox-active COF, even after 5000 charge-discharge cycles. These findings demonstrate the promise of using 2D COFs for capacitive storage.

High hopes: can molecular electronics realise its potential?

Manipulating and controlling the self-organisation of small collections of molecules, as an alternative to investigating individual molecules, has motivated researchers bent on processing and storing information in molecular electronic devices (MEDs). Although numerous ingenious examples of single-molecule devices have provided fundamental insights into their molecular electronic properties, MEDs incorporating hundreds to thousands of molecules trapped between wires in two-dimensional arrays within crossbar architectures offer a glimmer of hope for molecular memory applications. In this critical review, we focus attention on the collective behaviour of switchable mechanically interlocked molecules (MIMs)--specifically, bistable rotaxanes and catenanes--which exhibit reset lifetimes between their ON and OFF states ranging from seconds in solution to hours in crossbar devices. When these switchable MIMs are introduced into high viscosity polymer matrices, or self-assembled as monolayers onto metal surfaces, both in the form of nanoparticles and flat electrodes, or organised as tightly packed islands of hundreds and thousands of molecules sandwiched between two electrodes, the thermodynamics which characterise their switching remain approximately constant while the kinetics associated with their reset follow an intuitively predictable trend--that is, fast when they are free in solution and sluggish when they are constrained within closely packed monolayers. The importance of seamless interactions and constant feedback between the makers, the measurers and the modellers in establishing the structure-property relationships in these integrated functioning systems cannot be stressed enough as rationalising the many different factors that impact device performance becomes more and more demanding. The choice of electrodes, as well as the self-organised superstructures of the monolayers of switchable MIMs employed in the molecular switch tunnel junctions (MSTJs) associated with the crossbars of these MEDs, have a profound influence on device operation and performance. It is now clear, after much investigation, that a distinction should be drawn between two types of switching that can be elicited from MSTJs. One affords small ON/OFF ratios and is a direct consequence of the switching in bistable MIMs that leads to a relatively small remnant molecular signature--an activated chemical process. The other leads to a very much larger signature and ON/OFF ratios resulting from physical or chemical changes in the electrodes themselves. Control experiments with various compounds, including degenerate catenanes and free dumbbells, which cannot and do not switch, are crucial in establishing the authenticity of the small ON/OFF ratios and remnant molecular signatures produced by bistable MIMs. Moreover, experiments conducted on monolayers in MSTJs of molecules designed to switch and molecules designed not to switch have been probed directly by spectroscopic and other means in support of MEDs that store information through switching collections of bistable MIMs contained in arrays of MSTJs. In the quest for the next generation of MEDs, it is likely that monolayers of bistable MIMs will be replaced by robust crystalline extended structures wherein the switchable components, derived from bistable MIMs, are organised precisely in a periodic manner.

Bulk Synthesis of Exfoliated Two-Dimensional Polymers Using Hydrazone-Linked Covalent Organic Frameworks

Two-dimensional (2D) polymers assemble organic subunits into covalently linked, high-aspect-ratio networks with long-range order. Despite recent advances in 2D polymerization, scalable and general methods to access few- and single-layer materials are limited. Here we exfoliate a hydrazone-linked covalent organic framework (COF) to yield bulk quantities of few-layer two-dimensional (2D) polymers. Immersing the COF powder in several laboratory solvents exfoliates and disperses thin COF-43 samples, which maintain their characteristic periodic hexagonal structure. This phenomenon was characterized using infrared spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering, atomic force microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and selected area electron diffraction. 2D COFs with reduced interlayer interaction energies offer a new means to access high-aspect-ratio 2D polymers whose structure may be designed using established principles of COF synthesis.

Lattice Expansion of Highly Oriented 2D Phthalocyanine Covalent Organic Framework Films

Expanding into application: covalent organic framework (COF) films are ideally suited for vertical charge transport and serve as precursors of ordered heterojunctions. Their pores, however, were previously too small to accommodate continuous networks of complementary electron acceptors. Four phthalocyanine COFs with increased pore size well into the mesoporous regime are now described.

Kinetic and Thermodynamic Approaches for the Efficient Formation of Mechanical Bonds

Among the growing collection of molecular systems under consideration for nanoscale device applications, mechanically interlocked compounds derived from electrochemically switchable bistable [2]rotaxanes and [2]catenanes show great promise. These systems demonstrate dynamic, relative movements between their components, such as shuttling and circumrotation, enabling them to serve as stimuli-responsive switches operated via reversible, electrochemical oxidation-reduction rather than through the addition of chemical reagents. Investigations into these systems have been intense for a number of years, yet limitations associated with their synthesis have hindered incorporation of their mechanical bonds into more complex architectures and functional materials. We have recently addressed this challenge by developing new template-directed synthetic protocols, operating under both kinetic and thermodynamic control, for the preparation of bistable rotaxanes and catenanes. These methodologies are compatible with the molecular recognition between the pi-electron-accepting cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene) (CBPQT(4+)) host and complementary pi-electron-donating guests. The procedures that operate under kinetic control rely on mild chemical transformations to attach bulky stoppering groups or perform macrocyclizations without disrupting the host-guest binding of the rotaxane or catenane precursors. Alternatively, the protocols that operate under thermodynamic control utilize a reversible ring-opening reaction of the CBPQT(4+) ring, providing a pathway for two cyclic starting materials to thread one another to form more thermodynamically stable catenaned products. These complementary pathways generate bistable rotaxanes and catenanes in high yields, simplify mechanical bond formation in these systems, and eliminate the requirement that the mechanical bonds be introduced into the molecular structure in the final step of the synthesis. These new methods have already been put into practice to prepare previously unavailable rotaxane architectures and novel complex materials. Furthermore, the potential for utilizing mechanically interlocked architectures as device components capable of information storage, the delivery of therapeutic agents, or other desirable functions has increased significantly as a result of the development of these improved synthetic protocols.