Researchers obtain decacene, the largest acene synthesised ever
© TUD
In a new paper that has just been published online in the International Edition of Angewandte Chemie, scientists from the Institute for Materials Science and Center for Advancing Electronics at Technische Universität of Dresden - TUD (Chair of Prof. Gianaurelio Cuniberti) and the research center CiQUS (University of Santiago de Compostela) have been able to generate elusive decacene, a molecule formed by the linear fusion of ten benzene rings, the longest acene prepared ever. Throughout this research collaboration, led by professors Francesca Moresco (TUD) and Diego Peña (CiQUS), chemists from CiQUS prepared stable decacene precursors by solution chemistry, while physicists from TUD used these precursors to prepare decacene on a gold surface under ultra-high vacuum, in order to stabilise this extremely reactive compound. As a result, individual decacene molecules were visualised by high-resolution Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM).
A feat of collaborative European research
The outcome of this work demonstrates that collaborations between synthetic chemists and surface scientists can lead to the achievement of long-standing chemical challenges, as evidenced by this research. The study has been developed in the framework of the EU Project PAMS, oriented to the fabrication of nanosized electronic devices (Planar Atomic and Molecular Scale devices), and scientists involved have dedicated it to the memory of Prof Erich Clar, who is widely-considered a pioneer in the field of acene chemistry.
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