Liquid crystalline metal phthalocyanines: Structural organization on the substrate surface

• We provide an overview of growth behavior of mesogenic metal phthalocyanine films.
• Phthalocyanine liquid crystalline properties depend on their molecular structure.
• Analysis of factors influenced in the alignment of phthalocyanine films is carried out.
• Methods for the formation of films with controllable ordering are discussed.

The use of metallo phthalocyanines (MPcs) in technological applications requires certain methodological approaches for thin film fabrication. Among these applications the implementation of MPc films is in electronic devices such as organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) and photovoltaic (PV) devices. For such applications the control of alignment and ordering of MPc molecules within the films remains a considerable challenge. This review provides an overview of films’ growth of mesogenic MPcs offering systematic analysis of the influence of different factors on the structural organization of liquid crystalline phthalocyanine films, including phthalocyanines molecular structure, regimes of heating, substrate materials, and type of interfaces. The achievements in the development of methods and approaches for the formation of liquid crystalline phthalocyanine films with controllable alignment and ordering are discussed in sufficient details.