An unforeseen polymorph of coronene by the application of magnetic fields during crystal growth.

ABSTRACT: The continued development of novel drugs, proteins, and advanced materials strongly rely on our ability to self-assemble molecules in solids with the most suitable structure (polymorph) in order to exhibit desired functionalities. The search for new polymorphs remains a scientific challenge, that is at the core of crystal engineering and there has been a lack of effective solutions to this problem. Here we show that by crystallizing the polyaromatic hydrocarbon coronene in the presence of a magnetic field, a polymorph is formed in a ?-herringbone structure instead of the ubiquitous ?-herringbone structure, with a decrease of 35° in the herringbone nearest neighbour angle. The ?-herringbone polymorph is stable, preserves its structure under ambient conditions and as a result of the altered molecular packing of the crystals, exhibits significant changes to the optical and mechanical properties of the crystal.

SUBMITTER: Potticary J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4866376 | biostudies-literature | 2016 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature