Buckybowl and its chiral hybrids featuring eight-membered rings and helicene units

Chiroptical Amplification of [7]-Helicene Nanographene by Additional Helical Chirality

Nanographenes have captivated scientific interest since the pioneering discovery of graphene. Recently, attention has shifted towards exploring chiral and nonplanar nanographenes, for their distinct optical, chiroptical, and electronic properties. Despite the growing acceptance of helicenes, the research on inducing helical chirality on π-extended derivatives to boost chiroptical properties remains unattended. In our study, we introduce a new π-extended [7]-helicene resulting from the condensation of diamines with 3,6-dibromophenanthrene-9,10-dione, complemented by two hexabenzocoronene arms in the periphery. Notably, the nanographene containing binaphtho-[1,4]diazocine, compared to the corresponding phenazine, exhibits a remarkable average 2.5, 5, and 10-fold enhancements in quantum yield, dissymmetry factor, and brightness, respectively, when measured in five different solvents. These improvements underscore the significance of the induced helical chirality by the antiaromatic binaphtho-[1,4]diazocine in influencing the chiroptical properties of the helical nanographene. Our research represents a significant stride toward unlocking the potential of π-extended helicenes and lays the groundwork for further exploration in designing and synthesizing new chiral nanomaterials.

Synthesis, Structures, and Properties for PIII-Doped Hetero-Buckybowls and Their Phosphonium Salts

Doping polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with heteroatoms enables manipulation of their electronic structures. Herein, the structures and properties of phosphorus (P) doped heterosumanenes (HSEs) are regulated by varying the valence states of P-dopant. The phosphine sulfide (PV) and chalcogens (S, Se, Te) co-doped HSEs (1-3) are reduced to trivalent phosphorus (PIII) doped analogues 4-6. Then, the PIII-dopants on 4-6 are converted to phosphonium salts (R4P+), giving 7-9. The valence states of P-dopant show great influence on molecular geometries and electronic structures. Taking P and S co-doped HSEs as example, bowl-depths increase in the order of 1 (PV)<7 (R4P+)<4 (PIII), and the HOMO energy levels and HOMO-LUMO gaps increase to be 7<1<4. Consistent with the theoretical calculation, the first oxidation potentials decrease and the absorption/emission bands show blue shift from 7 to 1 to 4. The transformation of PV to PIII leads to large variations on the coordination with Ag+, owing to the alteration of coordination site from P=S to PIII. The phosphonium salts show ring-opening of phosphole rings under electrochemical reduction. It is found that chalcogen atoms play pivotal roles on coordination patterns of coordination complexes and the conversion rates of ring-opening reactions.

Coordination complexes of PIII-doped heterobuckybowls and their applications in catalysis

Doping the π-frameworks of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with main-group elements is a powerful strategy to manipulate optoelectronic properties. Herein, the benzylic carbons of π-bowl sumanene are replaced with chalcogens (S, Se, and Te) and trivalent phosphorus (PIII), affording a series of PIII-doped heterosumanenes (HSEs). The lone-pair electrons of the PIII-dopant endow these HSEs with pronounced affinity toward transition metals (Au+, Pt2+, and Pd2+). Accordingly, nine coordination complexes were synthesized to exhibit diverse coordination patterns contingent upon the metal ions and chalcogen atoms on HSEs. For the first time, we proved that the Pd2+ complexes of these HSEs are promising catalysts for the Suzuki-Miyaura coupling reaction of aryl chlorides.

Spiro-Buckybowls: Synthesis and Selective Transformations Toward Chiral and Nonlinear Optical Polycycles

Integration of spirocycles with buckybowls is a promising strategy to construct three-dimensional (3D) curved π-systems and to endow distinctive physicochemical features arising from buckybowls. Herein, a series of carbon-bridged spiro-type heterosumanenes (spiro-HSEs) were synthesized by combining 9,9'-spirobifluorene and dichalcogenasumanenes (DCSs). It is found that spiro-conjugation plays an important role in the geometric and electronic structures of spiro-HSEs. The bowl depth of DCSs moiety becomes larger in the spiro-HSEs. Owing to the Jahn-Teller (J-T) effect, two DCSs segments of spiro-HSEs have different bowl depths accompanied with the unequal distribution of charge in radical cation state. Taking advantage of the typical reactions of DCSs, selective transformations of spiro-HSEs have been adopted in accordance to the nature of chalcogen atoms (S, Se, Te) to bestow the value-added functionalities. The emissive property is enhanced by converting the thiophene rings of S-doped spiro-HSE into thiophene S,S-dioxides. A chiroptical polycycle could be produced by ring-opening of the edge benzene of Se-doped spiro-HSE. The covalent adduct of Te-doped spiro-HSE with Br2 forms non-centrosymmetric halogen-bonded networks, resulting in the high performance second-order nonlinear optics (NLO).

A Theoretical Study of Positively Curved Circulenes Embedded with Five-Membered Heterocycles: Structures and Inversions

Recently, polycyclic arenes with positive curvature have gained increasing significance in the field of material chemistry. This study specifically explores the inversion barriers of a series of positively curved circulenes by using five-membered heterocycles integrated into the backbone of primitive [5]circulenes and [6]circulenes. For hetero[5]circulenes, where one benzenoid ring is replaced by a heterocycle, the inversion barriers exhibit a strong correlation with the rotary angles of the heterocycles, and larger rotary angles result in lower inversion barriers. Additionally, the aromaticity of the circulene undergoes a significant reduction during the inversion process. As the number n of replaced rings increases, the inversion barriers can be adjusted, demonstrating an almost linear relationship with n. In the case of hetero[6]circulenes, molecules bearing heterocycles with small rotary angles also show positive curvatures. Furthermore, we examine the relationship between the radii of the fitted sphere for the circulenes and the inversion barriers, revealing an intriguing inverse proportionality between the fourth power of the radius and the inversion barrier. We anticipate that this research will offer a fresh perspective on studies related to positively curved polycyclic arenes.

Perylene with Split-Azulene Embedding

Splitting the five and seven-membered rings of azulene and embedding them separately into a conjugated backbone provides azulene-like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are of great interest in quantum and material chemistry. However, the synthetic accessibility poses a significant challenge. In this study, we present the synthesis of a novel azulene-like PAH, Pery-57, which can be viewed as the integration of a perylene framework into the split azulene. The compact structure of Pery-57 displays several intriguing characteristics, including NIR II absorption at 1200 nm, a substantial dipole moment of 3.5 D, and head-to-tail alternating columnar packing. Furthermore, Pery-57 exhibits remarkable redox properties. The cationic radical Pery-57⋅+ readily captures a hydrogen atom. Variable-temperature NMR (VT NMR ) and variable-temperature EPR (VT-EPR) studies reveal that the dianion Pery-572- possesses an open-shell singlet ground state and demonstrates significant global anti-aromaticity. The dication Pery-572+ is also predicted to exhibit diradical character. Despite bearing three bulky substituents, Pery-57 displays p-type transport characteristics with a mobility of 0.03 cm2 V-1 s-1, attributed to its unique azulene-like structure. Overall, this work directs interest in azulene-like PAHs, a unique member of nonalternant PAHs showcasing exceptional properties and applications.

π-extended pyrenes: from an antiaromatic buckybowl to doubly curved nanocarbons with gulf architectures

The synthesis of π-extended pyrenes keeps attracting considerable attention. In particular, frameworks containing nonbenzenoid rings might display intriguing properties. Here, we report a practical synthetic pathway to access a new buckybowl (1), which is composed of four five-membered rings externally fused to a pyrene core. The buckybowl 1 exhibits antiaromaticity involving 22 π-electrons, a rapid bowl-to-bowl interconversion, and a small band gap. Furthermore, this buckybowl could be subjected to Scholl cyclodehydrogenation to prepare the doubly curved nanocarbons (2rac and 2meso), which exist as two diastereomers, as demonstrated by X-ray crystal structure determination. Variable temperature 1H NMR measurements reveal that 2meso can isomerize into 2rac under thermal conditions, with an activation free energy of 27.1 kcal mol-1. Both the enantiomers of 2rac can be separated by chiral HPLC and their chiroptical properties are thoroughly examined. In addition, the nanocarbon 2meso with two gulf architectures facilitates host-guest chemistry with a variety of guests, including PDI, TDI, C60 and C70.

Periodically Twisted Molecular Wires Based on a Fused Unit for Efficient Intramolecular Hopping Transport

Realizing efficient long-distance intramolecular charge transport based on a hopping mechanism is a key challenge in molecular electronics. In hopping transport, a smaller reorganization energy (λ) and energy difference between hopping sites (ΔEhs) should lead to a smaller activation energy and faster charge transfer. However, the development of π-extended molecules that meet these requirements is challenging. In this study, we successfully synthesized several nanometer-scale π-extended molecules composed of a fused π-conjugated unit as a hopping site for reducing λ. Conformational twists between fused units effectively localize π-conjugation in each unit, contributing to reducing ΔEhs. The expected electronic structures of the oligomers were confirmed using spectroscopic and electrochemical measurements. Single-molecule conductance measurements exhibited higher conductance and lower activation energy than those of nonfused oligothiophenes. First-principles calculations indicated that smaller λ and ΔEhs values explain the high conductance. These results highlight the efficiency of the proposed molecular design for effective intramolecular hopping transport.

Negatively Curved Octagon-Incorporated Aza-nanographene and its Assembly with Fullerenes

A negatively curved aza-nanographene (NG) containing two octagons was synthesized by a regioselective and stepwise cyclodehydrogenation procedure, in which a double aza[7]helicene was simultaneously formed as an intermediate. Their saddle-shaped structures with negative curvature were unambiguously confirmed by X-ray crystallography, thereby enabling the exploration of the structure-property relationship by photophysical, electrochemical and conformational studies. Moreover, the assembly of the octagon-embedded aza-NG with fullerenes was probed by fluorescence spectral titration, with record-high binding constants (Ka=9.5×103 M-1 with C60, Ka=3.7×104 M-1 with C70) found among reported negatively curved polycyclic aromatic compounds. The tight association of aza-NG with C60 was further elucidated by X-ray diffraction analysis of their co-crystal, which showed the formation of a 1 : 1 complex with substantial concave-convex interactions.

Bespoke Tailoring of Graphenoid Sheets: A Rippled Molecular Carbon Comprising Cyclically Fused Nonbenzenoid Rings

The incorporation of nonbenzenoid rings into the hexagonal networks of graphenoid nanostructures is of immense importance for electronic, magnetic, and mechanical properties, but the underlying mechanisms of nonbenzenoid ring fusion are rather unexplored. Here, we report the synthesis and characterization of a rippled C84 molecular carbon, which contains 10 nonbenzenoid rings (five-, seven-, and eight-membered rings) that are contiguously fused to give a cyclic geometry. The fused nonbenzenoid rings impart high solubility, configurational stability, multiple reversible redox behaviors, unique aromaticity, and a narrow band gap to the system. Moreover, this carbon nanostructure allows for further functionalization via electrophilic substitution and metalation reactions, enabling access to finely tuned derivatives. Interestingly, both the bowl-shaped and planar conformations of the core in molecular carbon are observed in the solid state. Additionally, this molecular carbon displays ambipolar transport characteristics.

Synthesis of Heptagon-Containing Polyarenes by Catalytic C-H Activation

Nanocarbons incorporating non-hexagonal aromatic rings - such as five-, seven-, and eight-membered rings - have various intriguing physical properties such as curved structures, unique one-dimensional packing, and promising magnetic, optical, and conductivity properties. Herein, we report an efficient synthetic approach to polycyclic aromatics containing seven-membered rings via a palladium-catalyzed intramolecular Ar-H/Ar-Br coupling. In addition to all-hydrocarbon scaffolds, heteroatom-embedded heptagon-containing polyarenes can be efficiently constructed with this method. Rhodium- and palladium-catalyzed sequential six- and seven-membered ring formations also afford complex heptagon-containing molecular nanocarbons from readily available arylacetylenes and biphenyl boronic acids. Detailed mechanistic analysis by DFT calculations showed the feasibility of seven-membered ring formation by a concerted metalation-deprotonation mechanism. This reaction can serve as a template for the synthesis of a wide range of seven-membered ring-containing molecular nanocarbons.