Metal‐like Ductility in Organic Plastic Crystals: Role of Molecular Shape and Dihydrogen Bonding Interactions in Aminoboranes

• DOI: 10.1002/ange.202001060
• Publication Date: 2020-02-22T14:32:30Z
• Authors: Amit Mondal; Biswajit Bhattach...; Susobhan Das; Surojit Bhunia; Rituparno Chowdhury; Somnath Dey; C. Malla Reddy
• Keywords: Ductility (Earth science); Plastic crystal

Abstract Ductility is a common phenomenon in many metals but difficult to achieve molecular crystals. Organic crystals bend plastically on one or two face‐specific directions fracture when stressed any other arbitrary directions. An exceptional metal‐like ductility and malleability the isomorphous of globular molecules, BH 3 NMe BF , reported, with characteristic tensile stretching, compression, twisting, thinning. The mechanically deformed samples, which transition lower symmetry phases, retain good long‐range order amenable structure determination by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. Molecules these high‐symmetry interact through electrostatic forces (B − −N + ) form columnar structures multiple slip planes weak dispersive between columns. On hand, limited number facile strong dihydrogen bonding NHMe 2 negates ductility. Our study has implications for design soft ferroelectrics, solid electrolytes, barocalorics, robotics.