Regioselective Transformation of Long π-Conjugated Backbones: From Oligofurans to Oligoarenes

π-Conjugated oligofuran macrocycles

This Feature Article overviews a new class of π-conjugated materials - macrocyclic furans. Starting from their synthesis, we review their unique structural, optical and electronic properties, chemical reactivity, and potential application as synthons. Finally, we discuss the study of oligofuran macrocycles as a model system for exploring the concept of global aromaticity and the size limitation of Hückel's rule in neutral macrocycles.

Alternating behavior in furan-acetylene macrocycles reveals the size-dependency of Hückel's rule in neutral molecules

Aromaticity can be assigned by Hückel's rule, which predicts that planar rings with delocalized (4n + 2) π-electrons are aromatic, whereas those with 4n π-electrons are antiaromatic. However, for neutral rings, the maximal value of "n" to which Hückel's rule applies remains unknown. Large macrocycles exhibiting global ring current can serve as models for addressing this question, but the global ring current are often overshadowed in these molecules by the local ring current of the constituent units. Here, we present a series of furan-acetylene macrocycles, ranging from the pentamer to octamer, whose neutral states display alternating contributions from global aromatic and antiaromatic ring currents. We find that the odd-membered macrocycles display global aromatic characteristics, whereas the even-membered macrocycles display contributions from globally antiaromatic ring current. These factors are expressed electronically (oxidation potentials), optically (emission spectra), and magnetically (chemical shifts), and DFT calculations predict global ring current alternations up to 54 π-electrons.

Transformation of π-conjugated macrocycles: from furanophanes to napthalenophanes

Applying sequential Diels-Alder cycloaddition and deoxygenation to small π-conjugated furan macrocycles fully converts them to 1,4-naphthalophanes with either ethylene or acetylene spacers, depending on the reaction conditions. 1,4-Napthalenophane tetraene exhibits a 1,3-alternating conformation in the solid state, inclusion of solvent molecules within the macrocycle, and low reduction potentials.

A Macrocyclic Furan with Accessible Oxidation States: Switching Between Aromatic and Antiaromatic Global Ring Currents

Macrocyclic furans are predicted to switch between global aromaticity and antiaromaticity, depending on their oxidation states. However, the macrocyclic furans reported to date are stabilized by electron withdrawing groups, which result in inaccessible oxidation states. To circumvent this problem, a post-macrocyclization approach was applied to introduce methylene-substituted macrocyclic furans, which display an extremely low oxidation potential of -0.23 vs. Fc/Fc+ , and are partially oxidized in ambient conditions. Additional oxidation to the dication results in aromaticity switching to a global 30πe- aromatic state, as indicated by the formation of a strong diatropic current observed in the 1 H NMR spectrum. NICS and ACID calculations support this trend and provide evidence for a different pathway for the global current in the neutral and dicationic states. According to these findings, macrocyclic furans can be rendered as promising p-type materials with stable oxidation states.

Group 16 conjugated polymers based on furan, thiophene, selenophene, and tellurophene

Five-membered aromatic rings containing Group 16 elements (O, S, Se, and Te), also referred as chalcogenophenes, are ubiquitous building blocks for π-conjugated polymers (CPs). Among these, polythiophenes have been established as a model system to study the interplay between molecular structure, solid-state organization, and electronic performance. The judicious substitution of alternative heteroatoms into polythiophenes is a promising strategy for tuning their properties and improving the performance of derived organic electronic devices, thus leading to the recent abundance of CPs containing furan, selenophene, and tellurophene. In this review, we first discuss the current status of Kumada, Negishi, Murahashi, Suzuki-Miyaura, and direct arylation polymerizations, representing the best routes to access well-defined chalcogenophene-containing homopolymers and copolymers. The self-assembly, optical, solid-state, and electronic properties of these polymers and their influence on device performance are then summarized. In addition, we highlight post-polymerization modifications as effective methods to transform polychalcogenophene backbones or side chains in ways that are unobtainable by direct polymerization. Finally, the major challenges and future outlook in this field are presented.

Bottom-up modular synthesis of well-defined oligo(arylfuran)s

Oligofurans have attracted great attention in the field of materials over the last decades because of their several advantages, such as strong fluorescence, charge delocalization, and increased solubility. Although unsubstituted or alkyl-substituted oligofurans have been well-established, there is an increasing demand for the development of the aryl decorated oligofuran with structural diversity and unrevealed properties. Here, we report the bottom-up modular construction of chemically and structurally well-defined oligo(arylfuran)s by de novo synthesis of α,β′-bifuran monomers and late-stage bromination, stannylation and subsequent coupling reaction. The preliminary study of the photophysical properties demonstrated that the polarity-sensitive fluorescence emission and high quantum yields in THF solution could be achieved by modulating the aryl groups on the oligo(arylfuran)s. These twisted molecules constitute a new class of oligofuran backbone useful for structure−activities relationship studies. Meanwhile, the experimental studies and calculations showed that tetrafurans have appropriate HOMO energy levels, and could therefore potentially be high-performance p-type semiconductors.

Oligofurans have attracted great attention because of their strong fluorescence, charge delocalization, and increased solubility. Here the authors show a bottom-up modular construction of chemically and structurally well-defined oligo(arylfuran)s by de novo synthesis of α,β′-bifuran monomers and late-stage bromination, stannylation and subsequent coupling reaction.

Tuning chemoselectivity in O-/N-arylation of 3-aryl-1,2,4-oxadiazolones with ortho-(trimethylsilyl)phenyl triflates via aryne insertion

A finely tunable chemoselectivity in arylation of 3-aryl-1,2,4-oxadiazolones with ortho-(trimethylsilyl)phenyl triflates is reported, including silver-catalysed O-arylation and metal-free N-arylation.