A Test of Various Partial Atomic Charge Models for Computations on Diheteroaryl Ketones and Thioketones

A Computational Study of the Electronic Properties of Heterocirculenes: Oxiflowers and Sulflowers

This study investigated the relationship of electronic properties with some structural parameters of two circulene classes: Sulflowers and Oxiflowers. It is found that correlations between the HOMO-LUMO gap and some electronic properties of these circulenes are opposite to those of linear conjugated structures. Moreover, a new hybrid molecule, called an Oxisulflower, is proposed to be a potential structure for synthesizing as Sulflower. Also, a brand-new descriptor, namely, the "degree of non-planarity", is evaluated with excellent correlations with the HOMO-LUMO gap of molecules in Oxiflower and Sulflower classes. The correlations have also shown that the steric characteristic of a structure can be controlled to modulate its band gap for studying the prediction science of the electronic properties in developing organic semiconductors.

Non-covalent interactions involving remote substituents influence the topologies of supramolecular chains featuring hydroxyl-O–H⋯O(hydroxyl) hydrogen bonding in crystals of (HOCH2CH2)2NC(S)N(H)(C6H4Y-4) for Y = H, Me, Cl and NO2

Secondary non-covalent interactions prove crucial in determining the topology of supramolecular chains sustained by conventional O–H⋯O hydrogen bonding.

Atomic Partial Charges as Descriptors for Barrier Heights

Atomic partial charges are found to be valuable descriptors for barrier heights of unimolecular reactions due to the considerable information about the electronic structure embedded in them. If the chemical changes of the reactions are somewhat centralized at a single atom, the respective partial charge is a potentially meaningful descriptor and might outperform bond dissociation energies as descriptors. We propose that atomic partial charges should be considered as barrier height descriptors in future research.

Solid-phase hetero epitaxial growth of α-phase formamidinium perovskite

Conventional epitaxy of semiconductor films requires a compatible single crystalline substrate and precisely controlled growth conditions, which limit the price competitiveness and versatility of the process. We demonstrate substrate-tolerant nano-heteroepitaxy (NHE) of high-quality formamidinium-lead-tri-iodide (FAPbI₃) perovskite films. The layered perovskite templates the solid-state phase conversion of FAPbI₃ from its hexagonal non-perovskite phase to the cubic perovskite polymorph, where the growth kinetics are controlled by a synergistic effect between strain and entropy. The slow heteroepitaxial crystal growth enlarged the perovskite crystals by 10-fold with a reduced defect density and strong preferred orientation. This NHE is readily applicable to various substrates used for devices. The proof-of-concept solar cell and light-emitting diode devices based on the NHE-FAPbI₃ showed efficiencies and stabilities superior to those of devices fabricated without NHE.

Though literature reports metal halide perovskite epitaxial growth on various substrates, controlling film growth for device applications remains a challenge. Here, the authors report kinetic-controlled growth of halide perovskite thin films on various substrates via layered perovskite templates.

Porous Aromatic Framework Nanosheets Anchored with Lewis Pairs for Efficient and Recyclable Heterogeneous Catalysis

Lewis pairs (LPs) with outstanding performance for nonmetal-mediated catalysis reactions have high fundamental interest and remarkable application prospects. However, their solubility characteristics lead to instability and deactivation upon recycling. Here, the layered porous aromatic framework (PAF-6), featuring two kinds of Lewis base sites (NPiperazine and NTriazine), is exfoliated into few-layer nanosheets to form the LP entity with the Lewis acid. After comparison with various porous networks and verification by density functional theory (DFT) calculations, the NTriazine atom in the specific spatial environment is determined to preferably coordinate with the electron-deficient boron compound in a sterically hindered pattern. LP-bare porous product displays high catalytic activity for the hydrogenation of both olefin and imine compounds, and demonstrates ≈100% activity after 10 successful cycles in hydrogenation reactions. Considering the natural advantage of porous organic frameworks to construct LP groups opens up novel prospects for preparing other nonmetallic heterogeneous catalysts for efficient and recyclable catalysis.

Halogen Bonding: A Halogen-Centered Noncovalent Interaction Yet to Be Understood

In addition to the underlying basic concepts and early recognition of halogen bonding, this paper reviews the conflicting views that consistently appear in the area of noncovalent interactions and the ability of covalently bonded halogen atoms in molecules to participate in noncovalent interactions that contribute to packing in the solid-state. It may be relatively straightforward to identify Type-II halogen bonding between atoms using the conceptual framework of σ-hole theory, especially when the interaction is linear and is formed between the axial positive region (σ-hole) on the halogen in one monomer and a negative site on a second interacting monomer. A σ-hole is an electron density deficient region on the halogen atom X opposite to the R–X covalent bond, where R is the remainder part of the molecule. However, it is not trivial to do so when secondary interactions are involved as the directionality of the interaction is significantly affected. We show, by providing some specific examples, that halogen bonds do not always follow the strict Type-II topology, and the occurrence of Type-I and -III halogen-centered contacts in crystals is very difficult to predict. In many instances, Type-I halogen-centered contacts appear simultaneously with Type-II halogen bonds. We employed the Independent Gradient Model, a recently proposed electron density approach for probing strong and weak interactions in molecular domains, to show that this is a very useful tool in unraveling the chemistry of halogen-assisted noncovalent interactions, especially in the weak bonding regime. Wherever possible, we have attempted to connect some of these results with those reported previously. Though useful for studying interactions of reasonable strength, IUPAC’s proposed “less than the sum of the van der Waals radii” criterion should not always be assumed as a necessary and sufficient feature to reveal weakly bound interactions, since in many crystals the attractive interaction happens to occur between the midpoint of a bond, or the junction region, and a positive or negative site.

An examination of the nature of localized molecular orbitals and their value in understanding various phenomena that occur in organic chemistry

While canonical molecular orbitals have been used in computational chemistry for almost a century, the use of localized molecular orbitals is relatively new, and generating them has been difficult until recently. This has impeded their routine use in modeling chemical systems and reactions so that, even though localized molecular orbitals can now be generated easily, their usefulness in interpreting chemical phenomena has not been properly appreciated. Localized molecular orbitals can provide useful insights into chemical phenomena such as two-electron bonds, π delocalization, and lone pairs. A potentially important application would be interpreting the phenomena that occur in chemical reactions, in particular those reactions which can be described using the Lewis curly-arrow electron pushing convention. This paper considers how canonical and localized molecular orbitals are generated, their usefulness and limitations, and some issues that could be considered controversial regarding their nature, and it presents examples of the usefulness of LMOs in describing six chemical systems and one reaction.

Evaluation of calculated negative mode ion mobilities of small molecules in air

Ion mobility spectrometry is a well-known technique employed for the detection and analysis of gaseous substances. In pharmaceutical applications, it is furthermore used for structural analysis of compounds, especially in combination with mass spectrometry. In this field, the comparison of calculated collision cross sections and ion mobilities of theoretic model compounds with experimental values measured with ion mobility spectrometers helps to determine the compound's structure. For positive mode ion mobility spectrometry, the calculated mobilities using the Trajectory Method show in general a deviation of 10% or less from experimental values. In this article, it was analyzed how well the calculated values reproduce the experimental values obtained with negative mode ion mobility spectrometry including symmetric and asymmetric analyte clusters. Furthermore, the influence of four different partial charge models on the results was investigated.

Comparison of Experimental and Calculated Ion Mobilities of Small Molecules in Air

Ion mobility spectrometry is a well-known technique for analyzing gases. Examples are military applications, but also safety related applications, for example, for protection of employees in industries working with hazardous gases. In the last 15 years, this technique has been further developed as a tool for structural analysis, for example, in pharmaceutical applications. In particular, the collision cross section, which is related to the mobility, is of interest here. With help of theoretic principles, it is possible to develop molecular models that can be verified by the comparison of their calculated cross sections with experimental data. In this paper, it is analyzed how well the ion trajectory method is suitable to reproduce the measured ion mobility of small organic molecules such as the water clusters forming the positively charged reactant ions, simple aromatic substances, and n-alkanes.