Electronic properties of laterally-linked pyrene-based graphene nanoribbons

In this work, we use theoretical simulations to investigate a family of nanoribbons based on pyrene-like units as their building blocks. Namely, we consider derived ribbons formed by different lateral connections of a previously synthesized pyrene-based nanoribbon. Even though two-dimensional materials are usually the focus of studies in nanoelectronics, nanoribbons also play a crucial role in this field, as their reduced dimensionality fits well into many needs when developing nanocircuits. Further, given their broad set of possible structural configurations, nanoribbons allow for fine-tuning of their electronic properties, making it easier to fit them into particular applications. This is the case of the systems studied here, as we consider different ways to connect them laterally, resulting in different electronic signatures depending on the structural details of such couplings. Our study reveals materials ranging from metallic to semiconducting within the same class of structures. We further give useful insights on how these ribbons can behave in nanojunction transport setups.