Physical properties of self-assembled zinc chlorin nanowires for artificial light-harvesting materials

Abstract

The self-assembled supramolecular structures have recently attracted rising interest in view of their potential application in artificial photosynthesis, supramolecular electronics and many other scientific disciplines. In particular, self-assembled zinc chlorophyll nanowires appear to be highly promising candidates in the field of artificial photosynthesis and organic photovoltaics. In this work, the electrical conductivity properties of chlorosomal rod self-aggregates have been investigated by conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM). Two zinc chlorin derivatives bearing different length alkyl chains (ZnChl-C6 and ZnChl-C18) were prepared, and current–voltage characteristics of self-assembled zinc chlorin nanowires were investigated. The electrical conductivity and charge-carrier mobility of zinc chlorin nanowires were found to be 0.93 S/cm and 5.80×10?2cm2/V s, respectively. It is worth noting that these self-assembled zinc chlorin nanowires revealed higher electrical conductivity and the mobility than those of previously published chlorophyll derivative supramolecular nanowires. © 2017 Elsevier B.V.