Surfaces with purposes : The electroinitiated patterning of self‐assembled monolayers enables the fabrication of a variety of complex nanostructures (see picture). The possibilities offered by the introduction of chemical selectivity through the local generation of chemically active groups and subsequent derivatization are reviewed, with a focus on progress in this area of research over the last four years.
Modeling magnetism: The antiferromagnetic ground state of the C60/Si(001)‐c(4×4) surface is predicted by means of density functional theory calculations. Two adjacent dangling bonds (DBs) generated by the adsorption of C60 are antiferromagnetically coupled with each other. This study demonstrates that magnetic Si surfaces can be prepared by engineering single Si DBs with unpaired electrons.
ReacTiO 2 ns for rings : Gold nanoparticles supported on TiO2 are used as a novel heterogeneous catalyst for the isomerization of epoxides to allylic alcohols by a concerted mechanism (see scheme). The reaction proceeds in high yields and the product selectivity is often remarkable.
Building bridges : The title compound forms an unprecedented polymeric structure with bridging B–H–B three‐center two‐electron bonds in the solid state. This organoborane serves as an efficient precursor for the preparation of boron‐doped π‐conjugated polymers by hydroboration polymerization with a functionalized 1,4‐diethynylbenzene (see picture). These polymers form thin films that show intense green luminescence.
New pH‐sensitive probe design : A peek into the structure of fluorescent proteins led to the synthesis of fluorescent imidazoles. The prepared compounds demonstrated an array of remarkable pH‐dependent optical properties including at least two types of excited‐state charge transfers (see picture).
New Pd ‐ and Pt‐biscarbenes : The synthesis by the stoichiometric transmetalation reactions from Fischer alkoxy‐chromium(0) carbene complexes of stable mononuclear (palladium and platinum) alkoxy‐biscarbene complexes is reported. The structure, bonding situation, and the electronic and redox properties of these complexes are studied by a combination of experimental and computational (DFT) methods.
Clones on film : 7‐mer peptides that bind to azobenzene‐containing polymer films were selected from a phage library under visible light. Isolated clones showed greater affinities to the films under ultraviolet light than those under visible light. Furthermore, the peptide binding responds to the photoinduced isomerization of azobenzene groups.
The time is ripe : A general theoretical framework based on force‐transformed potential energy surfaces rationalizes the intriguing results of recent experiments in the emerging field of covalent mechanochemistry.
Shine a light with cyanates : A novel approach for the synthesis of urea complexes and homoleptic cyanates of alkaline earth metals and europium is described. The compounds have been fully characterized, including their magnetism and temperature‐dependent luminescence properties (see graphic).
Direct visualization of photoinduced tunneling charge transfer (TCT) in an Au5/para‐aminothiophenol (PATP)/Ag6 junction in which Au and Ag clusters form the first and second layer, respectively, is provided by the charge difference density (see picture; green and red stand for holes and electrons, respectively).
Buckle up! The dimerization of small fluorescent guests is strongly enhanced in presence of a cyclodextrin host. The host cavity acts like a belt to assist the self‐assembly of guests (see picture). Small variations in the guest structure have significant influence on the stability and geometry of the aggregates.
A very generous donor : The electrochemiluminescence (ECL) efficiency and radical stability of pyrene, a poor ECL luminophore, are markedly improved as the number of peripheral multidonor units increased in a series of compounds (see picture). Photophysical and electrochemical studies and theoretical calculations have contributed to the understanding of the ECL enhancement, which is a step forward in the development of new light‐emitting materials.
