Molecular organization of alkoxy-substituted oligo(phenylene-ethynylene)s studied by scanning tunneling microscopy

Morphologies and structures of self-assembled monolayers of two conjugated oligo(phenylene-ethynylene)s are observed by scanning tunneling microscopy at submolecular resolution. The cooperation of intermolecular and molecule/substrate interactions contributes to the long-range order. The influence of endgroups' hydrogen bonding and steric hindrance on the surface patterning is discussed. The different arrangement configuration of the two molecules could be due to the changed endgroups. This control of the two-dimensional self-assembly is promising for future studies on the electronic properties of these molecules.