Precursor design for bottom-up synthesis of graphene nanoribbons

Abstract

Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) are nanometer-wide ribbon-like graphenes with non-zero band gaps and are attracting attentions as quasi-one-dimensional nanocarbon materials with promise for the next-generation of electronics. GNRs have unique electronic, optical, and magnetic properties that depend on their chemical structures. While top-down methods fail to achieve the structural precision required to engineer their intriguing properties, bottom-up syntheses, using specific organic molecules as precursors, have allowed fabrication of atomically precise GNRs. A variety of GNRs with different widths and edge structures have thus been synthesized, revealing electronic properties as predicated by theory. Recently, we have synthesized GNRs having both armchair and zigzag edges, which demonstrated unique topological states, indicating the potential application of GNRs as topological materials.