Elements for a Rational Polymer Approach towards Carbon Nanostructures

摘要

Carbon nanostructures have prompted intense research efforts among scientists across various disciplines, as their unique mechanical, electronic, and optical properties promise to fuel progress in future technological applications.Among the most interesting carbon nanostructures in terms of possible applications are one-dimensionally extended structures such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene nano-ribbons (GNRs).Their physical properties depend crucially upon their diameter and width, respectively, as well as structural details such as their edge topology. However, all available physical preparative methods typically produce mixtures of these materials, and considerable research efforts have focused on the development of sophisticated separation and purification processes. Hence, novel methods that allow the tailored preparation of carbon nanostructures need to be developed to not only provide a pathway toward structurally pure samples of the already known carbon nanostructures, but also to enable scientists to synthesize and investigate novel structures with tuneable properties.'2' In this context, multistep organic syntheses provide the highest degree of structural control, as showcased by Scott and coworkers in their seminal report on the total synthesis of the parent C_(60) fullerene. More recently, the toolbox of classical organic synthetic methods has been complemented with new approaches inspired by the preparation of carbon materials.