Synthesis and spectroscopic properties of ring-fused thiophene bridged push–pull dyes and their application in dye-sensitized solar cells

Bisdimethylfluorenylamino-based push–pull dyes bearing one or two benzo[c]thiophene and its precursor bicyclo[2.2.2]octadiene (BCOD) fused thiophene as π bridge have been synthesized. The effect of fused-ring on thiophene bridge for the spectroscopic and electrochemical properties of these dyes has been investigated. Dye-sensitized solar cells fabricated with these dyes show moderate photovoltaic properties.     

Synthesis and Structure–Property Relationships of 2,2′‐Bis(benzo[b]phosphole) and 2,2′‐Benzo[b]phosphole–Benzo[b]heterole Hybrid π Systems

The first comprehensive study of the synthesis and structure–property relationships of 2,2′‐bis(benzo[b]phosphole)s and 2,2′‐benzo[b]phosphole–benzo[b]heterole hybrid π systems is reported. 2‐Bromobenzo[b]phosphole P‐oxide underwent copper‐assisted homocoupling (Ullmann coupling) and palladium‐catalyzed cross‐coupling (Stille coupling) to give new classes of benzo[b]phosphole derivatives. The benzo[b]phosphole–benzo[b]thiophene and ‐indole derivatives were further converted to P,X‐bridged terphenylenes (X=S, N) by a palladium‐catalyzed oxidative cycloaddition reaction with 4‐octyne through the C_β? H activation. X‐ray analyses of three compounds showed that the benzo[b]phosphole‐benzo[b]heterole derivatives have coplanar π planes as a result of the effective conjugation through inter‐ring C? C bonds. The π–π* transition energies and redox potentials of the cis and trans isomers of bis(benzo[b]phosphole) P‐oxide are very close to each other, suggesting that their optical and electrochemical properties are little affected by the relative stereochemistry at the two phosphorus atoms. The optical properties of the benzo[b]phosphole–benzo[b]heterole hybrids are highly dependent on the benzo[b]heterole subunits. Steady‐state UV/Vis absorption/fluorescence spectroscopy, fluorescence lifetime measurements, and theoretical calculations of the non‐fused and acetylene‐fused benzo[b]phosphole–benzo[b]heterole π systems revealed that their emissive excited states consist of two different conformers in rapid equilibrium.     

On the π‐Electron Distribution in Biphenylene Analogues

The bonding situation in a series of biphenylene analogues – benzo[b]biphenylene and its dication, 4,10‐dibromobenzo[b]biphenylene, naphtho[2,3‐b]biphenylene and its dianion, benzo[a]biphenylene, (biphenylene)tricarbonylchromium, benzo[3,4]cyclobuta[1,2‐c]thiophene, benzo[3,4]cyclobuta[1,2‐c]thiophene 2‐oxide, benzo[3,4]cyclobuta[1,2‐c]thiophene 2,2‐dioxide, 4,10‐diazabenzo[b]biphenylene, biphenylene‐2,3‐dione, benzo[3,4]cyclobuta[1,2‐b]anthracene‐6,11‐dione, and 3,4‐dihydro‐2H‐benzo[3,4]cyclobuta[1,2]cycloheptene – where one of the two benzo rings of biphenylene is replaced by a different π‐system (B) was investigated on the basis of the NMR parameters of these systems. From the vicinal ¹H,¹H spin‐spin coupling constants, the electronic structure of the remaining benzo ring (A) is derived via the Q‐value method. It is found that increasing tendency of B to tolerate exocyclic double bonds at the central four‐membered ring of these systems favors increased π‐electron delocalization in the A ring. The analysis of the chemical shifts supports this conclusion. NICS (nucleus‐independent chemical shift) values as well as C,C bond lengths derived from ab initio calculations are in excellent agreement with the experimental data. The charged systems benzo[b]biphenylene dication and naphtho[2,3‐b]biphenylene dianion ( 7 ²⁻) are also studied by ¹³C NMR measurements. The charge distribution found closely resembles the predictions of the simple HMO model and reveals that 7 ²⁻ can be regarded as a benzo[3,4]cyclobuta[1,2‐b]‐substituted anthracene dianion. It is shown that the orientation of the tricarbonylchromium group in complexes of benzenoid aromatics can be derived from the vicinal ¹H,¹H coupling constants.     

Synthesis of Benzo[c]thiophene Analogs Containing Benzimidazole,Benzothiazole, and Oxazole

Iodine-mediated cyclization of benzo[c]thiophene aldehyde with 1,2-diphenylamine/2-aminophenylthiol led to the formation of benzimidazole/benzothiazole-incorporated benzo[c]thiophenes. Similarly, reaction of benzo[c]thiophene aldehyde with p-toluenesulfonylmethyl isocyanide (TOSMIC) reagent in the presence of K₂CO₃ as a base furnished oxazole-containing benzo[c]thiophene analogs.     

The synthesis of novel polycyclic heterocyclic ring systems via photocyclization. 22 Dibenzo[f,h]benzothieno[2,3‐c]quinoline,dibenzo[f,h]benzothieno[2,3‐c][1,2,4]triazolo[4,3‐a]quinoline and dibenzo[f,h]naphtho[2′,1′:4,5]thieno[2,3‐c]quinoline

Photocyclization of 3‐chloro‐N‐(9‐phenanthryl)benzo[b]‐thiophene‐2‐carboxamide ( 3 ) and 3‐chloro‐N‐(9‐phenanthryl)‐naphtho[1,2‐b]thiophene‐2‐carboxamide ( 10 ) yielded dibenzo[f,h]benzothieno[2,3‐c]‐quinolin‐10(9H)‐one ( 4 ) and dibenzo[f,h]naphtho[2′,1′:4,5]thieno[2,3‐c]quinolin‐10(9H)‐one ( 11 ), respectively. Further elaboration of the lactams provided three novel unsubstituted new ring systems.     

Synthesis and Characterization of Thienothiophene Conjugated Benzo[c]Thiophene Analogs

Syntheses of thienothiophene tethered benzo[c]thiophene analogs starting from thienothiophenyl lactone are reported. The benzo[c]thiophenes containing thienothiophene unit upon Vilsmeier–Haack formylation followed by condensation with malononitrile/thiophene‐2‐acetonitrile furnished corresponding cyano‐vinylenes. Optical and electrochemical properties of thienothiophene conjugated benzo[c]thiophene analogs are correlated with their structures.     

The First Five‐Membered‐Heterocycle‐Fused Subphthalocyanine Analogues: Chiral Tri(benzo[b]thiopheno)subporphyrazines

Two tri(benzo[b]thiopheno)subporphyrazine regioisomers with C₃ and C₁ molecular symmetry have been isolated from the cyclotrimerization of benzo[b]thiophene‐2,3‐dicarbonitrile as the first five‐membered‐heterocycle‐fused subphthalocyanine analogues. Optical resolution of both regioisomers was achieved by using a chiral HPLC technique, affording the first chiral subphthalocyanine analogues.     

Highly Efficient and Diastereoselective Construction of Tricyclic Pyrrolidine‐Fused Benzo[b]thiophene 1,1‐dioxide Derivatives via 1,3‐Dipolar [3 + 2] Cycloaddition

A rapid and highly efficient 1,3‐dipolar [3 + 2] cycloaddition of nonstabilized azomethine ylides generated in situ with benzo[b]thiophene 1,1‐dioxides as the dipolarophiles has been developed. The efficient method affords tricyclic pyrrolidine‐fused benzo[b]thiophene 1,1‐dioxide derivatives in high to excellent yields (up to 99%) with excellent diastereoselectivities (up to >25:1 dr) under mild reaction conditions. The structure of a typical product was confirmed by X‐ray crystallography.     

Polyfunctional Lithium,Magnesium, and Zinc Alkenyl Reagents as Building Blocks for the Synthesis of Complex Heterocycles

New conjunctive β‐silylated organometallic reagents of Li, Mg, and Zn have been prepared and used for an expeditive construction of various polyfunctionalized 5‐, 6‐, and 7‐membered heterocycles, such as furans, pyrroles, quinolines, benzo[b]thieno‐[2,3‐b]pyridine, naphthyridines, fused pyrazoles, and 2,3‐dihydro‐benzo[c]azepines. The latent silyl group has been converted into various carbon–carbon bonds in most heterocycle types.     

Recent advances in the synthesis of benzo[b]thiophene fused polycyclic derivatives: Strategies and reactions

Benzo[b]thiophene fused compounds with a unique active heterocyclic skeleton have wide applications in the fields of medicinal chemistry, organic synthesis, and organic functional materials, which resulted in rapid development of many efficient methods for the construction of benzo[b]thiophene-fused heterocycles in recent years. Among these methods, the domino reaction of benzo[b]thiophene derivatives is a practical and powerful synthetic route to access benzo[b]thiophene-fused heterocycles by virtue of the particularity of sulfur atom. This review summarizes the latest developments in the construction of benzo[b]thiophene-fused heterocycles by ring formation at the C2-C3-position of benzo[b]thiophene derivatives in the past decade. Additionally, this review is divided into four parts according to the four kinds of benzo[b]thiophene derivatives used, including thioaurone, thioisatin, substituted benzo[b]thiophene, and azadiene.     

A Solution‐Processable Molecule using Thieno[3,2‐b]thiophene as Building Block for Efficient Organic Solar Cells

A solution‐processed acceptor‐π‐donor‐π‐acceptor (A‐π‐D‐π‐A) type small molecule, namely DCATT, has been designed and synthesized for the application as donor material in organic solar cells. The fused aromatic unit thieno[3,2‐b]thiophene (TT) flanked with thiophene is applied as π bridge, while 4,8‐bisthienyl substituted benzodithiophene (BDT) and 2‐ethylhexyl cyanoacetate are chosen as the central building block and end group, respectively. Introduction of fused ring to the small molecule enhances the conjugation length of the main chain, and gives a strong tendency to form π–π stacking with a large overlapping area which favors to high charge carrier transport. Small‐molecule organic solar cells based on blends of DCATT and fullerene acceptor exhibit power conversion efficiencies as high as 5.20 % under the illumination of AM 1.5G, 100 mW cm^?2.     

Thiophene π bridge effect on bulky side‐chained benzodithiophene‐based photovoltaic polymers

Recently, we have used terthiophene side chain to modify benzo[1,2‐b:4,5‐b′]dithiophene (BDT) to form novel building block for BDT polymers. In this paper, this building block is used to copolymerized with thieno[3,4‐c]pyrrole‐4,6‐dione (TPD) and thieno[3,4‐b]thiophene (TT). This building block and TPD‐ or TT‐based polymers (P1 and P3) show high open circuit voltage (V_OC) (ca. 0.9–0.95 V) and low energy loss (E_g–eV_OC) in solar cells devices compared with similar polymers without bulky side chain. We further introduce thiophene π bridge into these polymers backbone to form two other polymers (P2 and P4). We find this thiophene π bridge does contribute to this bulky side chained benzodithiophene polymer photovoltaic performances, especially for power conversion efficiencies (PCEs). The polymer solar cells (PSCs) performances are moderate in this article due to the serious aggregation in the PSCs active layer. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 1615–1622     

Acylation and Cyclodehydration of Benzofuran-, Benzothiophene-, and Indolyl-3-acetic Acid Arylamides. Synthesis of Novel Benzofuro[2,3-c]-, Benzothieno[2,3-c], and Indolo[2,3-c]pyrilium and Pyridine Derivatives

The acylation of benzo[b]furan-, benzo[b]thiophene, and indolyl-3-acetic acid arylamides using acetic anhydride in the presence of 70% perchloric acid occurs at the -position of the heterocycle to give 2-acetylbenzo[b]furan-, 2-acetylbenzo[b]thiophene, and 2-acetylindolyl-3-acetic acid arylamides. Depending on the amount of perchloric used in the reaction they undergo cyclodehydration to 3-arylamino-1-methylhetero[2,3-c]pyrilium salts and to N-aryl-1-methyl-3(2H)hetero[2,3-c]pyridones.     

Synthesis,Properties, and π‐Dimer Formation of Oligothiophenes Partially Bearing Orthogonally Fused Fluorene Units

A series of oligothiophenes that incorporate cyclopenta[c]thiophene‐based units bearing spiro‐substituted dialkylfluorene was synthesized. Photophysical measurements indicated that there was no interruption in the conjugation along the oligothiophene backbones, irrespective of the number or position of this unit. Electrochemical measurements showed that the thiophene 7‐mers and 11‐mer exhibit reversible multi‐oxidation waves. The formation of cationic species was clearly observed from UV/Vis/NIR measurements. Furthermore, the UV/Vis/NIR spectra at 223 K under one‐electron oxidation conditions revealed that the unsubstituted thiophene or bithiophene units remained in the absence of intermolecular π–π interactions, whereas the formation of π‐dimeric species was observed for the thiophene 7‐mer containing an unsubstituted terthiophene ( U₃ ) unit. Theoretical calculations indicated that the combination of the U₃ unit and the all‐trans conformation decreased the intermolecular steric repulsion between the fused cyclopentene ring and its facing thiophene, which may contribute to the formation of the dimeric structure.     

Donor–acceptor‐integrated conjugated polymers based on carbazole[3,4‐c:5,6‐c]bis[1,2,5]thiadiazole with tight π–π stacking for photovoltaics

An original strategy to construct a new donor–acceptor (D–A)‐integrated structure by directly imposing “pull” unit on the “push” moiety to form fused ring architecture has been developed, and poly{N‐alkyl‐carbazole[3,4‐c:5,6‐c]bis[1,2,5]thiadiazole‐alt‐thiophene} (PCBTT) with D–A‐integrated structure, in which two 1,2,5‐thiadiazole rings are fixed on carbazole in 3‐, 4‐ and 5‐, 6‐position symmetrically and thiophene is used as bridge, has been synthesized. The interaction between pull and push units has fine tuned the HOMO/LUMO energy levels, and the resulting copolymer covers the solar flux from 300 to 750 nm. The interaction between pull and push units is worth noting that due to the fused five rings inducing strong intermolecular interaction, an extremely short π–π stacking distance of 0.32 nm has been achieved for PCBTT both in powder and solid states. This is the shortest π–π stacking distance reported for conjugated polymers. Additionally, an obvious intramolecular charge transfer and energy transfer from donor units to acceptor units have been detected in this D–A integration. A moderate‐to‐high open‐circuit voltage of ～0.7 V in PCBTT:[6,6]‐phenyl‐C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) (w/w = 1/2) solar cells is achieved due to the low‐lying HOMO energy level of PCBTT. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2013     

Fused‐ring nitrogen and sulfur heterocycles by a tandem SN2‐michael addition reaction

A tandem S_N2‐Michael addition reaction has been developed for the synthesis of cis‐ and trans‐fused nitrogen and sulfur heterocycles from the cis and trans isomers of ethyl (±)‐(2E)‐3‐[2‐(iodomethyl)cyclo‐hexyl]‐2‐propenoate. Octahydro‐1H‐isoindole‐1‐acetic acid and octahydrobenzo[c]thiophene‐1‐acetic acid derivatives have been prepared and their stereochemistries elucidated using NMR and X‐ray crystallo‐graphic methods. Cyclization substrates for both the cis‐ and the trans‐fused rings are readily available in four steps from known compounds. Yields for the cyclization range from 80‐85% and stereochemical selec‐tivities with respect to the side chain vary from 12.5‐16:1 for the cis‐fused structures to 6‐7.5:1 for the trans‐fused structures. Steric interactions in the transition states for ring closure are proposed to rationalize the observed preferences.     

Synthesis, structure, and both cathodic and anodic reversible redox reactions of benzochalcogenophenes containing ferrocene units

2,3-Diferrocenylbenzo[b]thiophene and 1,3-diferrocenylbenzo[c]thiophene have been systematically and selectively synthesized from benzo[b]thiophene and phthaloyl dichloride, respectively. Characterization of the molecules was performed by physical and spectroscopic means and X-ray crystallographic analyses. The cyclic voltammograms of the novel thiophene derivatives containing ferrocene fragments showed a well-defined reversible cathodic step derived from the unusually stable thiophene radical anions and two distinct reversible anodic steps derived from ferrocenium cations separated from each other by a thiophene heterocycle. 1,3-Diferrocenylbenzo[c]selenophene was also synthesized in a similar manner for formation of 1,3-diferrocenylbenzo[c]thiophene by the use of bis(dimethylaluminum) selenide as a selenating reagent.     

Ring‐ring interconversions. Part 3. On the effect of the substituents on the thiazole moiety in the ring‐opening/ring‐closing reactions of nitrosoimidazo[2,1‐b][1,3]thiazoles with hydrochloric acid

The reaction of 6‐(4‐chlorophenyl)‐5‐nitrosoimidazo[2,1‐b][1,3]thiazole 1b , 6‐(4‐chlorophenyl)‐2‐methyl‐5‐nitrosoimidazo[2,1‐b][1,3]thiazole 1c , 6‐(4‐chlorophenyl)‐2,3‐dimethyl‐5‐nitrosoimidazo‐[2,1‐b][1,3]thiazole 1d and 2‐(4‐chlorophenyl)‐3‐nitrosobenzo[d]imidazo[2,1‐b][1,3]thiazole 1e with hydrochloric acid has been carried out in order to investigate the effect of substituents on the thiazole ring in a recently reported ring‐ring interconversion reaction. In every case the corresponding [1,4]‐thiazino[3,4‐c][1,2,4]oxadiazol‐3‐ones 2b‐e have been obtained. In particular, the benzoderivative 1e furnished the 4‐(4‐chlorophenyl)‐4‐hydroxy‐4H‐benzo[5,6][1,4]thiazino[3,4‐c][1,2,4]oxadiazol‐1‐one 2e , containing a new tricyclic system with a quasi‐planar geometry whose pharmacological potentialities appear promising.     

A Versatile Synthesis,PM3‐Semiempirical,Antibacterial, and Antitumor Evaluation of Some Bioactive Pyrazoles

This research work describes the synthesis and biological properties of some novel isolated or fused heterocyclic ring systems with pyrazole, for example; enaminones containing pyrazolone ring photochromic functional unit, 4‐[(4‐chlorophenylamino)methylene]‐3‐methyl‐1‐phenyl‐1H‐pyrazol‐5(4H)‐one (3) and some analogous derivatives 4, 9, and 10, also as pyrazolo[3,4‐b]pyridine, pyrazolo[3,4‐b]quinoline, pyrazolo[3′,4′:4,5]thieno[2,3‐c]pyrazoline and pyrazolo[3,4‐c]pyrazole were synthesized and characterized. Newly synthesized compounds were characterized by IR, ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, mass spectral data and quantum mechanical calculations. Selected products were tested for their antibacterial and antitumor agents.     

The synthesis of novel polycyclic heterocyclic ring systems via photocyclization. 2 . Benzo[h][1]benzothieno[2,3-c]quinoline and benzo[h][1]benzothieno[2,3-c]quinoline

The synthesis of two previously unknown unsubstituted heterocyclic ring systems namely, benzo[h][1]benzothieno[2,3-c]quinoline ( 6 ) and benzo[f][1]benzothieno[2,3-c]quinoline ( 12 ) is reported. These two novel ring systems have been assembled by photocyclization of the appropriate amides.