Themed collection Novel π-electron molecular scaffolds

Novel π-electron molecular scaffolds with exciting properties will bring new discussions and excitement to the chemical community.

Nanocalipers were synthesized by connecting directly the five aromatic moieties including two receptors, two corners and a core, and found to discriminate the diameter, metallicity and handedness of carbon nanotubes through selective complexation.

Hexadehydro-Diels–Alder (HDDA) reactions between alkynes and 1,3-diynes readily generate highly reactive and synthetically useful arynes.

Macrocyclic pentadecaphenylene incorporates fullerene C₆₀ in its cavity to afford fibrous 2 : 1 and 1 : 1 sandwich complexes.

[2.2]-Acenophanes are a class of compounds with two acene units interconnected by two ethano bridges.

Deep red and NIR electroluminescence from pyrene-fused bisphenazinothiadiazoles.

A new synthesis of aza-anthraquinones and substituted anthraquinones via bidentate Lewis acid catalysis has been developed.

The effect of triptycenylene end-groups on the optoelectronic properties of aroyleneimidazoles and their performance as acceptors in bulk heterojunction photovoltaic devices are described.

By the combination of 9a-azaphenalene and a perpendicularly oriented acene, we have synthesized three derivatives of a series of novel, fully-conjugated nitrogen-containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

4H-Dithieno[2,3-b:3’,2’-e][1,4]-thiazine (DTT), and its radical cation and dication were synthesized, characterized (EPR spectroscopy and spectroelectrochemistry) and interpreted (DFT and TD DFT calculations).

Surprisingly helical: a pyrrolic [5]helicene embedded into a six-membered ring framework is preferred over a heterocyclic pendant of hexabenzocoronene.

Largely π-extended naphthalenediimides were synthesized by using efficient palladium catalyzed C–H/C–H homocouplings, with the yields of up to 94%.

A new two-spin system having two anthroxyl radicals was found to be stable even after exposing it to refluxing ethanol.

Pentacene-5,7,12,14-tetraone was subjected to selective olefination and cross-coupling reactions to yield a new class of pentacene-based π-conjugated systems with intriguing structural, electronic, and redox properties.

Single and triple bay-bridging Scholl-type cyclizations of several 1,4,8-triaryl-substituted tribenzotriquinacenes are subject to pronounced electronic and steric substituent effects.

Two twisted terrylene diimides as non-fullerene acceptors for solar cells have been designed with a resulting power conversion efficiency of 3.64%.

A highly twisted CC double bond elicits changes in the physicochemical properties of π-systems.

Sulfur-containing side chains in the periphery of o-terphenyl or triphenylene units of crown ethers induce room-temperature columnar mesophases.

Dimeric aminoazulene and poly[2(6)-aminoazulene] are synthesized by Buchwald–Hartwig coupling of the corresponding monomeric carbamatoaminozulenes followed by hydrolysis.

Quasi-one-dimensional open-shell singlet ladder oligomers composed of indenofluorene-like units show strong correlation between multiradical nature, aromaticity and second hyperpolarizability.

The synthesis and characterization of a series of meso-to-meso Pt^II-bridged Ni^II-porphyrin dimers are described.

A new fluorophore displays remarkable solvatofluorochromism, a CIEE effect, and an intense blue-green fluorescence in the presence of cyanide ions.

The selective insertion of a CH₂ or NH group is achieved through the PCl₅ induced reaction of a CH₂OH or NHOH group, respectively.

A straightforward synthetic route toward redox-active tri- and tetrastar phosphaviologen oligomers that show the intriguing ability of storing up to 8 electrons is reported.

A series of A–D–A–D–A co-oligomers was developed and implemented as donor materials in solution-processable organic solar cells showing the dependence of molecular structures on the power conversion efficiency upon solvent vapor annealing.

A large π–conjugated macrocycle featuring a –[D–π–A]₃– backbone is synthesized, exhibiting strongly solvent-dependent fluorescence and evident two-photon absorption ability.

Benzofuran has been proven to be the versatile substituent for tuning the optics of diketopyrrolopyrroles.

A new method based on a palladium-catalyzed tandem reaction for the fast construction of a dianthraceno[a,e]pentalene (DAP) framework is developed, which gave a series of dianthraceno[a,e]pentalenes with good functional group tolerance, and it should be highlighted that five C–C bonds were formed in one reaction.

The first azacorannulene with a nitrogen on the rim, has been synthesized in seven steps from 4-bromoisoquinoline.

Naphtho[2,3-b]thiophene diimide was selectively thionated to afford the corresponding dicarboxy-dithiocarboxy diimide with a low-lying LUMO of −4.2 eV.

A new kind of sp² carbon nano-rings containing a heptagon and an octagon was synthesized by taking advantage of the “C” shape of syn-tetrabenzoheptafulvalene.

Diazadithio and diazadiseleno[8]circulenes were synthesized in good yields through a non-pyrolytic cyclization starting from nitrogen-bridged tetraphenylene.

Three new highly twisted 5,6,11,12-tetraarylindeno[1,2-b]fluorenes have been synthesized, characterized with X-ray analysis, and utilized as electron donors in organic photovoltaics.

Polymerization of acetylene in the presence of sterically-hindered endgroups leads to polyynes, but with lengths shorter than by stepwise syntheses.

A bisbutadiyne bridged azahelicene dimer with a figure-eight shape, which exhibited both high fluorescence quantum yield and CPL properties, has been synthesized through the Glaser–Hay homo-coupling reaction with diethynylazahelicene.

The syntheses, and optoelectronic and structural properties of 2,7-donor- and acceptor-functionalized dibenzo[a,e]pentalenes, accessed in a versatile synthetic route, are presented and discussed.

A fused heteroacene derivative, bis(dicyanomethylene)-end-capped-dithieno[2,3-d;2′,3′-d]benzo[2,1-b;3,4-b′]-dithiophene (4CN-DTmBDT) was synthesized.

A novel synthetic strategy based on cascade C–C cross-coupling and C–H arylation afforded structurally unique polycyclic aromatics with desirable optical and redox properties.