Exploring the minimal structure of a wholly aromatic organogelator: simply adding two β-cyano groups to distyrylbenzene

Abstract

The minimal structure of a wholly π-conjugated aromatic organogelator was explored in this work to show that distyrylbenzene with simple β-cyano substitution (β-DCS) is highly efficient for gelation which is attributed to the cooperative interplay of π–π stacking and secondary bonding interactions of dipolar cyano groups.