Synthesis, structure, and nonlinear optical properties of cross-conjugated perphenylated iso-polydiacetylenes

Monodisperse, cross-conjugated perphenylated iso-polydiacetylene (iso-PDA) oligomers, ranging from monomer 15 to pentadecamer 25, have been synthesized by using a palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling protocol. Structural characteristics elucidated by X-ray crystallographic analysis demonstrate a non-planar backbone conformation for the oligomers due to the steric interactions between alkylidene phenyl groups. The electronic absorption spectra of the oligomers show a slight red-shift of the maximum absorption wavelength as the chain length increases from dimer 17 b to pentadecamer 25, a trend that has saturated by the stage of nonamer 22. Fluorescence spectroscopy confirms that the pendent phenyl groups present on the oligomer framework enhance emission, and the relative emission intensity consistently increases as a function of chain length n. The molecular third-order nonlinearities, gamma, for this oligomer series have been measured via differential optical Kerr effect (DOKE) detection and show a superlinear increase as a function of the oligomer chain length n. Molecular modeling and spectroscopic studies suggest that iso-PDA oligomers (n>7) adopt a coiled, helical conformation in solution.     

Synthesis and derivatization of ethynyl alpha,alpha-dibromomethyl ketones: formation of highly functionalized vinyl triflates

[reaction: see text] We describe the synthesis of alpha,alpha-dibromomethyl ynones (8) and their subsequent derivatization to vinyl acetates (10). These vinyl acetates feature a 1,1-dibromo-olefin moiety, which is readily exploited in palladium-catalyzed Sonogashira, Stille, and Suzuki cross-coupling reactions with alkynes, stannanes, and boronic acids, respectively. A novel one-pot process then directly converts the resulting vinyl acetates 11-13 to the vinyl triflate derivatives 14a-j.     

Study of cross-conjugated iso-polytriacetylenes and related oligoenynes

Two series of monodisperse cross-conjugated oligomers based on enyne repeat units have been realized. The first class of molecules, iso-polytriacetylenes (iso-PTAs, 2), was divergently synthesized using an iterative sequence of palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions of vinyl triflate 5 with terminal alkynes. The second series of oligoenynes (17-20) are based on an octatetrayne backbone, and result from homocoupling of the differentially protected iso-PTA oligomers 8-11. The longest member of this series, 20, spans ca. 5.6 nm from Si atom to Si atom and is composed of a contiguous sequence of 44 sp and sp(2) carbons. The lowest energy electronic absorption band for iso-PTA dimers in the progression 13 --> 9 --> 16 is consistently red-shifted as a result of extending the cross-conjugated structure. A similar comparison within each series (i.e., 16, 6-7, or 17-20), however, suggests little effect on the electronic characteristics of these molecules as oligomer length is increased. The solid-state properties of one derivative, 17, are also described.     

1,1,2,2-Tetraethynylethanes: Synthons for Tetraethynylethenes and Modules for Acetylenic Molecular Scaffolding

The synthesis of functionalized 1,1,2,2-tetraethynylethanes (= 3,4-diethynylhexa-1,5-diynes) as synthons for tetraethynylethenes (3,4-diethynylhex-3-ene-1,5-diynes) and as building blocks for three-dimensional acetylenic molecular scaffolding targeting the synthesis of the molecular carbon belts 3 and 4 is reported (Scheme 1). Reaction of diethyl oxalate and (trialkylsilyl)ethynyl Grignard reagents afforded the silyl-protected 3,4-diethynylhexa-1,5-diyne-3,4- diols 7 and 8 which were transformed in high yields into the cyclic carbonate 9 and the cyclic orthoesters 10–13 , respectively (Scheme 2). The solid-state structures of 9 and 10 were elucidated by X-ray crystallography. The alkyne protecting groups in 9, 10 , and 12 were smoothly removed to give the free tetraynes 14–16 as relatively stable oils in nearly quantitative yields (Scheme 3). Orthoesters 15 and 16 underwent Pd-catalyzed cross-coupling with iodobenzene to give the tetraphenyl derivatives 17 and 18 (Scheme 4). Thermal acid-catalyzed elimination of the orthoester moieties in 12 and 13 produced the silyl-protected tetraethynylethenes 19 and 20 and concluded a novel, simple three-step synthesis of these fully two-dimensionally conjugated π-chromophores (Scheme 5).     

Ammonium cyanate shows N-H...N hydrogen bonding, not N-H...O

The transformation of ammonium cyanate into urea, first studied over 170 years ago by W?hler and Liebig, has an important place in the history of chemistry. To understand the nature of this solid state reaction, knowledge of the crystal structure of ammonium cyanate is a prerequisite. Employing neutron powder diffraction, we demonstrate conclusively that, in the structure of ammonium cyanate, the NH(4)(+) cation forms N-H...N hydrogen bonds to four cyanate N atoms at alternate corners of a distorted cube, rather than our previously proposed alternative arrangement with N-H...O hydrogen bonds to cyanate O atoms at the other four corners.     

Methanofullerene Molecular Scaffolding: Towards C60-substituted poly(triacetylenes) and expanded radialenes,preparation of a C60–C70 hybrid derivative,and a novel macrocyclization reaction

The synthesis of (E)-hex-3-ene-l, 5-diynes and 3-methylidenepenta-1, 4-diynes with pendant methano[60]-fullerene moieties as precursors to C₆₀-substituted poly(triacetylenes) (PTAs, Fig. 1) and expanded radialenes (Fig. 2) is described. The Bingel reaction of diethyl (E)-2, 3-dialkynylbut-2-ene-1, 4-diyl bis(2-bromopropane-dioates) 5 and 6 with two C₆₀ molecules (Scheme 2) afforded the monomeric, silyl-protected PTA precursors 9 and 10 which, however, could not be effectively desilylated (Scheme 4). Also formed during the synthesis of 9 and 10 , as well as during the reaction of C₆₀ with thedesilylated analogue 16 (Scheme 5 ), were the macrocyclic products 11, 12 , and 17 , respectively, resulting from double Bingel addition to one C-sphere. Rigorous analysis revealed that this novel macrocyclization reaction proceeds with complete regio- and diastereoselectivity. The second approach to a suitable PTA monomer attempted N, N′-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide(DCC)-mediated esterification of (E)-2, 3-diethynylbut-2-ene-l, 4-diol ( 18 , Scheme 6) with mono-esterified methanofullerene-dicarboxylic acid 23 ; however, this synthesis yielded only the corresponding decarboxylated methanofullerene-carboxylic ester 27 (Scheme 7). To prevent decarboxylation, a spacer was inserted between the reacting carboxylic-acid moiety and the methane C-atom in carboxymethyl ethyl 1, 2-methano[60]fullerene-61, 61-dicarboxylate ( 28 , Scheme 8), and DCC-mediated esterification with diol 18 afforded PTA monomer 32 in good yield. The formation of a suitable monomeric precursor 38 to C₆₀-substituted expanded radialenes was achieved in 5 steps starting from dihydroxyacetone (Schemes 9 and 10), with the final step consisting of the DCC-mediated esterification of 28 with 2-[1-ethynyl(prop-2-ynylidene)]propane-1, 3-diol ( 33 ). The first mixed C₆₀-C₇₀ fullerene derivative 49 , consisting of two methano[60]fullerenes attached to a methano[70]fullerene, was also prepared and fully characterized (Scheme 13). The C_s-symmetrical hybrid compound was obtained by DCC-mediated esterification of bis[2-(2-hydroxy-ethoxy)ethyl] 1, 2-methano[70]fullerene-71, 71-dicarboxylate ( 46 ) with an excess of the C₆₀-carboxylic acid 28 . The presence of two different fullerenes in the same molecule was reflected by its UV/VIS spectrum, which displayed the characteristic absorption bands of both the C₇₀ and C₆₀ mono-adducts, but at the same time indicated no electronic interaction between the different fullerene moieties. Cyclic voltammetry showed two reversible reduction steps for 49 , and comparison with the corresponding C₇₀ and C₆₀ mono-adducts 46 and 30 indicated that the three fullerenes in the composite fullerene compound behave as independent redox centers.     

Low‐energy ion scattering: Determining overlayer thickness for functionalized gold nanoparticles

With the widespread use of engineered nanoparticles for biomedical applications, detailed surface characterization is essential for ensuring reproducibility and the quality/suitability of the surface chemistry to the task at hand. One important surface property to be quantified is the overlayer thickness of self‐assembled monolayer (SAM) functionalized nanoparticles, as this information provides insight into SAM ordering and assembly. We demonstrate the application of high sensitivity low‐energy ion scattering (HS‐LEIS) as a new analytical method for the fast thickness characterization of SAM functionalized gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). HS‐LEIS demonstrates that a complete SAM is formed on 16‐mercaptohexadecanoic acid (C16COOH) functionalized 14 nm AuNPs. HS‐LEIS also experimentally provides SAM thickness values that are in good agreement with previously reported results from simulated electron spectra for surface analysis of X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy data. These results indicate HS‐LEIS is a valuable surface analytical method for the characterization of SAM functionalized nanomaterials. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Philicity of Acetonyl and Benzoyl Radicals: A Comparative Experimental and Computational Study

In this work, the reactivities of acetonyl and benzoyl radicals in aromatic substitution and addition reactions have been compared in an experimental and computational study. The results show that acetonyl is more electrophilic than benzoyl, which is rather nucleophilic. A Hammett plot analysis of the addition reactions of the two radicals to substituted styrenes clearly support the nucleophilicity of benzoyl, but in the case of acetonyl, no satisfactory linear correlation with a single substituent-related parameter was found. Computational calculations helped to rationalize this effect, and a good linear correlation was found with a combination of polar parameters (σ⁺) and the radical stabilization energies of the formed intermediates. Based on the calculated philicity indices for benzoyl and acetonyl, a quantitative comparison of these two radicals with many other reported radicals is possible, which may help to predict the reactivities of other aromatic radical substitution reactions.     

Development of Novel Isoindolone-Based Compounds against Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense

This study identified the isoindolone ring as a scaffold for novel agents against Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense and explored the structure-activity relationships of various aromatic ring substitutions. The compounds were evaluated in an integrated in vitro screen. Eight compounds exhibited selective activity against T. b. rhodesiense (IC₅₀<2.2 μm ) with no detectable side activity against T. cruzi and Leishmania infantum. Compound 20 showed low nanomolar potency against T. b. rhodesiense (IC₅₀=40 nm ) and no toxicity against MRC-5 and PMM cell lines and may be regarded as a new lead template for agents against T. b. rhodesiense. The isoindolone-based compounds have the potential to progress into lead optimization in view of their highly selective in vitro potency, absence of cytotoxicity and acceptable metabolic stability. However, the solubility of the compounds represents a limiting factor that should be addressed to improve the physicochemical properties that are required to proceed further in the development of in vivo-active derivatives.