Triphenylene nano/microwires for sensing nitroaromatics

We report the synthesis, characterization, and application of triphenylene nano/microwires for sensing nitroaromatics. The fluorescence of these wires is dependent on the size of the wires, which can be controlled by heating temperature and time. The cross optical polarized microscopy result shows a birefringent crystal structure of the triphenylene microwires. Fluorescence imaging shows that the crystalline triphenylene nano/microwires may be used as a waveguide material. Both the conductivity and fluorescence of the crystalline nano/microwires change selectively in the presence of vapor of nitrobenzene, a representative nitroaromatic, suggesting that the nano/microwires of triphenylene may be used for selective detection of explosives.