Growth and characterisation of centimetre-sized single crystals of molecular organic materials

The growth of high quality single crystals and the control of their size and shape are crucial issues for the study of the fundamental physical properties of materials. A novel floating-drop technique is here employed for the growth of centimetre-sized single crystals of different organic molecular materials, namely oligothiophenes and oligocenes dissolved in organic solvents, using water as liquid substrate. The static properties of the two-liquid system are described and their tuning for the control of the thickness of the grown crystals discussed. The quality of the samples is assessed by atomic force microscopy and optical absorption spectroscopy measurements.