Star-Shaped Oligo(<i>p</i>-phenylenevinylene) Substituted Hexaarylbenzene:  Purity, Stability, and Chiral Self-assembly<sup>†</sup> TomovićŽeljko DongenJoost van GeorgeSubi J. XuHong PisulaWojciech LeclèrePhilippe M. J. SmuldersMaarten FeyterSteven De MeijerE. W. P. H. J. SchenningAlbertus 2007 An oligo(<i>p</i>-phenylenevinylene) (OPV)-substituted hexaarylbenzene has been synthesized and fully characterized. Recycling gel permeation chromatography appeared to be a powerful technique to obtain the OPV molecules in a very pure form. X-ray analysis and polarization optical microscopy revealed that the OPV molecule is plastic crystalline at room temperature with an ordered columnar superstructure. In apolar solvents, the molecules self-assemble via a highly cooperative fashion into right-handed chiral superstructures, which are stable even at high temperatures and low concentration. Atomic force microscopy revealed right-handed fibers with a diameter of 6 nm, indicating π-stacked aggregates; on a silicon oxide substrate, supercoiled chiral structures were observed. STM studies on a liquid−solid interface showed that the star-shaped OPV molecule forms an organized monolayer having a chiral hexagonal lattice.