Conductive microrod preparation by molecular self-assembly and polymerization

Conductive microrods were prepared by evaporation-induced self-assembly (EISA) and subsequent polymerization of a novel, self-assembling molecule with pyrrole end groups. The newly synthesized self-assembling molecule of N′1,N′6-bis(3-(1-pyrrolyl)propanoyl) hexanedihydrazide self-assembled from a dilute solution into microrods. Pyrrole ring stacking was the key driving force inducing molecular self-organization to microrods. After the self-assembly, the pyrrole groups on the surface of the microrods were chemically polymerized to make the microrod conductive. The electrical conductance of the polymerized microrods was comparable to that of other conducting polymer microrods. Analyses of the polymerized microrods confirmed that the polymerization took place only at the surface of the microrod assembly. This study proved the concept of self-assembly and polymerization to generate complex structured functional materials, and is valuable for the design of functional self-assembling molecules.