A Low-Symmetry Copper Benzenehexathiol Coordination Polymer with In-Plane Electrical Anisotropy

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

Electrically conductive coordination polymers (ECCPs), particularly those incorporating benzenehexathiol (BHT) ligands, are emerging as a distinctive class of electronic materials with tunable semiconducting and metallic properties. However, the exploration of novel ECCPs with low-symmetry structures and electrical anisotropy remains under development. Here, we report the on-water surface synthesis of a novel ECCP, namely Cu5BHT, which exhibits a low-symmetry structure and unique in-plane electrical anisotropy that differs from the well-known Cu3BHT phase. Utilizing imaging and diffraction techniques, we elucidate the unit cell and crystal structure of Cu5BHT, revealing an asymmetric arrangement of the kagome resembling lattice connected by two different secondary building units: square planar CuS4 and non-planar Cu2S4. Theoretical studies indicate that Cu5BHT is metallic and exhibits in-plane electrical anisotropy due to the structure arranged in interconnected well-conducting CuS4 chains and less-conducting Cu2S4 slabs oriented along single crystal direction. Single-crystal electrical measurements confirm a metallic character characterized by the increase of conductance upon cooling. Notably, the measured conductance along different crystal directions within the ab plane unambiguously reveals a significant anisotropy, with an anisotropic factor reaching ~8. This work demonstrates a novel low-symmetry ECCP and highlights its potential for achieving in-plane electrical anisotropy.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere202423341
Number of pages7
JournalAngewandte Chemie - International Edition
Volume64
Issue number13
Publication statusPublished - 24 Mar 2025
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 39800665
ORCID /0000-0002-8487-0972/work/189707375

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Keywords

  • electrically conductive coordination polymers, in-plane electrical anisotropy, kagome lattice, low-symmetry structure, metallic