The design and fabrication of supramolecular semiconductor nanowires formed by benzothienobenzothiophene (BTBT)-conjugated peptides

Khalily, M. A., Usta, H., Ozdemir, M., Bakan, G., Dikecoglu, F. B., Edwards-Gayle, C., Hutchinson, J. A., Hamley, I. W. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4549-0926, Dana, A. and Guler, M. O. (2018) The design and fabrication of supramolecular semiconductor nanowires formed by benzothienobenzothiophene (BTBT)-conjugated peptides. Nanoscale, 10 (21). pp. 9987-9995. ISSN 2040-3364 doi: 10.1039/c8nr01604f

Abstract/Summary

π-Conjugated small molecules based on a [1]benzothieno[3,2-b]benzothiophene (BTBT) unit are of great research interest in the development of solution-processable semiconducting materials owing to their excellent charge-transport characteristics. However, the BTBT π-core has yet to be demonstrated in the form of electro-active one-dimensional (1D) nanowires that are self-assembled in aqueous media for potential use in bioelectronics and tissue engineering. Here we report the design, synthesis, and self-assembly of benzothienobenzothiophene (BTBT)–peptide conjugates, the BTBT–peptide (BTBT-C3–COHN-Ahx-VVAGKK-Am) and the C8-BTBT–peptide (C8-BTBT-C3–COHN-Ahx-VVAGKK-Am), as β-sheet forming amphiphilic molecules, which self-assemble into highly uniform nanofibers in water with diameters of 11–13(±1) nm and micron-size lengths. Spectroscopic characterization studies demonstrate the J-type π–π interactions among the BTBT molecules within the hydrophobic core of the self-assembled nanofibers yielding an electrical conductivity as high as 6.0 × 10−6 S cm−1. The BTBT π-core is demonstrated, for the first time, in the formation of self-assembled peptide 1D nanostructures in aqueous media for potential use in tissue engineering, bioelectronics and (opto)electronics. The conductivity achieved here is one of the highest reported to date in a non-doped state.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/77535
Identification Number/DOI	10.1039/c8nr01604f
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Chemistry, Food and Pharmacy > Department of Chemistry
Publisher	The Royal Society of Chemistry
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