Electronic Properties of Tetrathiafulvalene-Modified Cyclic-β-Peptide Nanotube

July 28, 2017

Title

Electronic Properties of Tetrathiafulvalene-Modified Cyclic-β-Peptide Nanotube

Author

Hirotaka Uji, Hyunji Kim, Tomoya Imai, Shota Mitani, Junji Sugiyama, Shunsaku Kimura

Year

2016

Journal

Peptide Science

Abstract

Cyclic tri-β-peptide having tetrathiafulvalene (TTF) at the side chain was synthesized to prepare a peptide nanotube aligning TTF side chains along the nanotube. The polarized light microscopic observations revealed crystallization of the cyclic peptide by the vapor diffusion method. Fourier-transform infrared and electron diffraction measurements of the crystals clarified formation of homogeneous hydrogen bonds making a columnar structure with a layer spacing of 4.9 Å. Electronic measurements of the peptide crystals on a gold mica substrate were carried out by the current sensing AFM. The current–voltage curves showed a rectification behavior, whose profile was consistent with a metal and p-type semiconductor junction. The p-type property is supported by the first principle calculations, which showed the HOMO orbital delocalizing fully over the plane of the TTF ring with the energy level of −5.1 eV. 

Instrument

J-1500

Keywords

Circular dichroism, Nanostructures, Biochemistry, Materials