Self-Assembled Organic Functional Nanotubes and Nanorods and Their Sensory Properties

Self-assembled, one-dimensional nanostructures of N,N'-bis(2-(trimethylammonium iodide)ethylene)perylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxyldiimide (PTCDI-I) with tunable morphologies were successfully prepared by a facile evaporation method. PTCDI-I nanotubes with diameters of approximately 100-300 nm were obtained by the evaporation of the aqueous solution of PTCDI-I, while long nanorods with diameters of approximately 200-300 um were produced by slow evaporation of the methanolic solution of PTCDI-I. Studies of the nanostructures formed at different stages suggested that the fort-nation of nanotubes and nanorods could be ascribed to different crystallization processes from different solutions. The PTCDI-I nanostructures were redox-active, and four-probe measurements based on a single nanotube or nanorod exhibited resistance decreased by 2 to 3 orders of magnitude after being exposed to reducing agents such as hydrazine or phenylhydrazine. Such high resistance modulations indicate that these nanostructures will be useful as building blocks for electronic nanodevices and sensors.