Effect of furan, thiophene and selenophene donor groups on benzoselenadiazole based donor-acceptor-donor systems

Building Block Engineering toward Realizing High-Performance Electrochromic Materials and Glucose Biosensing Platform

The molecular engineering of conjugated systems has proven to be an effective method for understanding structure-property relationships toward the advancement of optoelectronic properties and biosensing characteristics. Herein, a series of three thieno[3,4-c]pyrrole-4,6-dione (TPD)-based conjugated monomers, modified with electron-rich selenophene, 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT), or both building blocks (Se-TPD, EDOT-TPD, and EDOT-Se-TPD), were synthesized using Stille cross-coupling and electrochemically polymerized, and their electrochromic properties and applications in a glucose biosensing platform were explored. The influence of structural modification on electrochemical, electronic, optical, and biosensing properties was systematically investigated. The results showed that the cyclic voltammograms of EDOT-containing materials displayed a high charge capacity over a wide range of scan rates representing a quick charge propagation, making them appropriate materials for high-performance supercapacitor devices. UV-Vis studies revealed that EDOT-based materials presented wide-range absorptions, and thus low optical band gaps. These two EDOT-modified materials also exhibited superior optical contrasts and fast switching times, and further displayed multi-color properties in their neutral and fully oxidized states, enabling them to be promising materials for constructing advanced electrochromic devices. In the context of biosensing applications, a selenophene-containing polymer showed markedly lower performance, specifically in signal intensity and stability, which was attributed to the improper localization of biomolecules on the polymer surface. Overall, we demonstrated that relatively small changes in the structure had a significant impact on both optoelectronic and biosensing properties for TPD-based donor-acceptor polymers.

1,4-Bis((9H-Carbazol-9-yl)Methyl)Benzene-Containing Electrochromic Polymers as Potential Electrodes for High-Contrast Electrochromic Devices

Four 1,4-bis((9H-carbazol-9-yl)methyl)benzene-containing polymers (PbCmB, P(bCmB-co-bTP), P(bCmB-co-dbBT), and P(bCmB-co-TF)) were electrosynthesized onto ITO transparent conductive glass and their spectral and electrochromic switching performances were characterized. The PbCmB film displayed four types of color variations (bright gray, dark gray, dark khaki, and dark olive green) from 0.0 to 1.2 V. P(bCmB-co-bTP) displayed a high transmittance variation (∆T = 39.56% at 685 nm) and a satisfactory coloration efficiency (η = 160.5 cm2∙C-1 at 685 nm). Dual-layer organic electrochromic devices (ECDs) were built using four bCmB-containing polycarbazoles and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) as anodes and a cathode, respectively. PbCmB/PEDOT ECD displayed gainsboro, dark gray, and bright slate gray colors at -0.4 V, 1.0 V, and 2.0 V, respectively. The P(bCmB-co-bTP)/PEDOT ECD showed a high ∆T (40.7% at 635 nm) and a high coloration efficiency (η = 428.4 cm2∙C-1 at 635 nm). The polycarbazole/PEDOT ECDs exhibited moderate open circuit memories and electrochemical redox stability. The characterized electrochromic properties depicted that the as-prepared polycarbazoles had a satisfactory application prospect as an electrode for the ECDs.

A-π-D-π-A-Based Small Molecules for OTFTs Containing Diketopyrrolopyrrole as Acceptor Units

A-π-D-π-A-based small molecules 6,6′-((thiophene-2,5-diylbis(ethyne-2,1-diyl))bis(thiophene-5,2-diyl))bis(2,5-bis(2-ethylhexyl)-3-(thiophen-2-yl)-2,5-dihydropyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrrole-1,4-dione) (TDPP-T) and 6,6′-(((2,3-dihydrothieno[3,4-b][1,4]dioxine-5,7-diyl)bis(ethyne-2,1-diyl))bis(thiophene-5,2-diyl))bis(2,5-bis(2-ethylhexyl)-3-(thiophen-2-yl)-2,5-dihydropyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrrole-1,4-dione) (TDPP-EDOT) have been designed and synthesized. The diketopyrrolopyrrole acts as an electron acceptor, while the thiophene or 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene acts as an electron donor. The donor–acceptor groups are connected by an ethynyl bridge to further enhance the conjugation. The optoelectronics, electrochemical, and thermal properties have been investigated. Organic thin film transistor (OTFT) devices prepared from TDPP-T and TDPP-EDOT have shown p-type mobility. In as cast films, TDPP-T and TDPP-EDOT have shown a hole mobility of 5.44 × 10⁻⁶ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹ and 4.13 × 10⁻⁶ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹, respectively. The increase in the mobility of TDPP-T and TDPP-EDOT OTFT devices was observed after annealing at 150 °C, after which the mobilities were 3.11 × 10⁻⁴ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹ and 2.63 × 10⁻⁴ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹, respectively.

Electrochemical and Solvent-Mediated Visible-to-Near-Infrared Spectroscopic Switching of Benzoselenadiazole Fluorophores

A series of electronic push-pull, pull-pull, and push fluorophores has been prepared from a benzoselenadiazole core so that their spectroscopic, electrochemical, spectro-electrochemical, and spectro-electrofluorescence properties could be examined. The emission wavelengths and fluorescence quantum yields (Φ_fl ) of the N,N-dimethyl fluorophores were contingent on the solvent polarity and they ranged from 615 to 850 nm in aprotic solvents. The positive solvatochromism and the quenched Φ_fl in polar solvents were consistent with an intramolecular charge-transfer state (ICT). Meanwhile, a locally excited state (LE) was assigned in nonpolar solvents from the blue-shifted emission and high Φ_fl . The N,N-dimethylamine fluorophores examined could be both electrochemically oxidized and reduced, whereas the symmetric dinitro pull-pull derivative could be only reversibly reduced. Courtesy of their electrochemical reversibility, the fluorophores could reversibly change color from yellow to blue with an applied potential in addition to switching off their emission. The absorption of the electrochemically generated intermediates of the N,N-dimethyl derivatives spanned 500 nm over the visible and the NIR regions. The colors could be switched for upwards of two hours with applied potential, illustrating their potential use as electroactive materials in electrochromic devices.

The Effect of Acceptor Structure on Emission Color Tuning in Organic Semiconductors with D-π-A-π-D Structures

A series of novel donor-acceptor D-π-A-π-D compounds were synthesized and characterized in order to determine the influence of different acceptor units on their properties. The introduction of acceptor moieties had a direct impact on the HOMO and LUMO energy levels. Fluorescence spectra of compounds can be changed by the choice of an appropriate acceptor and were shifted from the green to the near-infrared part of spectra. Due to observed concentration induced emission quenching, the green exciplex type host was used to evaluate the potential of synthesized molecules as emitters in organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).

A promising enzyme anchoring probe for selective ethanol sensing in beverages

A newly designed amperometric biosensor for the determination of ethanol through one-step electrochemical coating of (4,7-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]selenadiazole-co-1H-pyrrole-3-carboxylic acid) (TBeSe-co-P3CA) on a graphite electrode is presented. It was aimed to propose a newly synthesized copolymer with enhanced biosensing properties as a novel sensor for the quantification of ethanol. The conjugated copolymer (TBeSe-co-P3CA) was prepared through electrochemical polymerization by potential cycling. After polymer modification, alcohol oxidase (AOx) was immobilized on a modified electrode surface for ethanol sensing. In the analytical investigation, the calibration plot is linear above large concentration range (0.085 to 1.7 mM), where sensitivity is around 16.44 μA/mMcm² with a very low detection limit (LOD) of 0.052 mM based on the signal-to-noise ratio in short response time. Moreover, interfering effect of some possible compounds were examined and the capability of the biosensor in estimating ethanol content in commercial alcoholic beverages was also demonstrated. The results showed satisfactory accuracy of the developed sensor and confirm the proposed sensor has a potential for ethanol quantification compared to the currently used techniques.