Target-oriented design of helical nanotube molecules for rolled incommensurate bilayers

Abstract

Incommensurate double-wall carbon nanotubes give rise to unique stereochemistry originating from twisted stacks of hexagon arrays, but atomic-level studies of molecular analogues are hindered by the challenges in designing and synthesizing pairs of chiral cylindrical molecules. Here, a molecular version of incommensurate double-wall carbon nanotubes is designed by development of a roadmap of synthetically accessible chiral indices.