From vesicles to helical nanotubes: a sergeant-and-soldiers effect in the self-assembly of oligo(p-phenyleneethynylene)s

Abstract

Coassembly of short molecular wires OPE1 with chiral analogues OPE2, both of which are CD silent, exhibited a sergeant-and-soldiers effect that resulted in transformation of vesicular aggregates of OPE1 into CD-active helical nanotubes (see schematic picture), as revealed by CD, dynamic light scattering, and atomic force and transmission electron microscopies (TEM). OPE=oligo(p-phenyleneethynylene)