Subliming the unsublimable: how to deposit nanographenes

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2009;48(25):4602-4. doi: 10.1002/anie.200900911.

Abstract

Quite sublime: Thin-layer fabrication of unsublimable large polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by pulsed laser deposition was used to prepare samples for scanning tunneling microscopy. Giant PAHs with up to 222 carbon atoms can be visualized-a size that was previously not possible because of the lack of suitable deposition methods.