Extension of conjugation leading to bathochromic or hypsochromic effects in OPV series

Four OPV series 1-4 (a-d) with a terminal dialkylamino group as electron donor were prepared by Wittig-Horner reactions. To study the influence of the push-pull effect on the long-wavelength absorption, three of the four series contained terminal acceptor groups (CN, CHO, NO(2)). The length of the chromophores strongly affects the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT)-an effect which superimposes upon the extension of the conjugation. Increasing numbers n of repeat units cause an overall bathochromic shift for the purely donor-substituted series 1 a-4 a and the series 1 b-4 b with CN as weak acceptor. The two effects annihilate each other in the series 1 c-4 c with terminal CHO groups, so that the absorption maxima are almost independent of the length of the chromophore. A hypsochromic shift is observed for the series 1 d-4 d, which contains the strong acceptor group NO(2). This anomaly disappears on protonation of the dialkylamino group because the push-pull effect disappears in the ammonium salts. The results can be explained by semiempirical quantum mechanics (AM1, INDO/S). The HOMO-LUMO transition, which is mainly responsible for the ICT, becomes less important in the electron transitions S(0)-->S(1) when the distance between donor and acceptor is increased. The commonly used VB model, which contains an electroneutral and a zwitterionic resonance structure, is contrasted with a MO model with dipole segments at both ends of the OPV chains. The latter model turned out to be more appropriate-at least for donor-acceptor-substituted OPVs with n >/= 2.     

An Unexpected Formation of a 14‐Membered Cyclodepsipeptide

The treatment of diluted solutions of the hydroxy diamides 6a and 6b in toluene with HCl gas at 100° gave the dimeric, 14‐membered cyclodepsipeptide 10 in up to 72% yield (Scheme 3). The same product was formed from the linear dimer of 6b , the depsipeptide 11 , under the same conditions (cf. Scheme 4). All attempts to prepare the cyclic seven‐membered monomer 9 , starting with different precursors and using different lactonization methods failed, and 10 was the only product which was isolated (cf. Scheme 6). For example, the reaction of the ester 20 with NaH in toluene at 80° led exclusively to the cyclodimer 10 . On the other hand, the base‐catalyzed cyclization of the hydroxy diester 22 , which is the ‘O‐analogue' of 20 , yielded neither the seven‐membered dilactone, nor the 14‐membered tetralactone, but only the known trimer 23 and tetramer 24 of 2,2‐dimethylpropano‐3‐lactone (cf. Scheme 7).     

Optical second-harmonic generation from a monolayer of centrosymmetric molecules adsorbed on silver

An increase in the optical second-harmonic signal arising from an electrochemically treated silver surface upon adsorption of a monolayer of the centrosymmetric molecule pyrazine is reported and an effective second-order non-linear polariz-ability for the adsorbed species deduced. These investigations illustrate the potential of second-harmonic generation in the elucidation of interfaces.     

cis‐(6RS,13RS)‐3,3,10,10‐Tetra­methyl‐6,13‐diphenyl‐1,8‐dioxa‐4,11‐diaza­cyclo­tetra­decane‐2,5,9,12‐tetra­one and two of its precursors

The title macrocycle, C₂₆H₃₀N₂O₆, (VI), was obtained by `direct amide cyclization' from the linear precursor 3‐hydr­oxy‐N‐[1‐methyl‐1‐(N‐methyl‐N‐phenyl­carbamoyl)ethyl]‐2‐phenylpropanamide, the N‐methyl­anilide of rac‐2‐methyl‐2‐[(3‐hydroxy‐2‐phenyl­propanoyl)­amino]­propanoic acid, C₁₃H₁₇NO₄, (IV). The reaction proceeds via the inter­mediate rac‐2‐(2‐hydroxy‐1‐phenyl­ethyl)‐4,4‐dimethyl‐1,3‐oxazol‐5(4H)‐one, C₁₃H₁₅NO₃, (V), which was synthesized independently and whose structure was also established. Unlike all previously described analogues, the title macrocycle has the cis‐diphenyl configuration. The 14‐membered ring has a distorted rect­angular diamond‐based [3434] configuration and inter­molecular N—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the mol­ecules into a three‐dimensional framework. The propanoic acid precursor forms a complex series of inter­molecular hydrogen bonds, each of which involves pairwise association of mol­ecules and which together result in the formation of extended two‐dimensional sheets. The oxazole inter­mediate forms centrosymmetric hydrogen‐bonded dimers in the solid state.     

Synthesis of a Derivative of the Peptaibol‐Antibiotic Trichovirin I 1B by Means of the ‘Azirine/Oxazolone Method’

According to the earlier published synthesis of the C‐terminal nonapeptide of Trichovirin I 1B, Z‐Ser(^tBu)‐Val‐Aib‐Pro‐Aib‐Leu‐Aib‐Pro‐Leuol ( 5 ), the complete tetradecapeptide Z‐Aib‐Asn(Trt)‐Leu‐Aib‐Pro‐Ser(^tBu)‐Val‐Aib‐Pro‐Aib‐Leu‐Aib‐Pro‐Leuol ( 11b ), a protected Trichovirin I 1B, has now been prepared by means of the ‘azirine/oxazolone method’. With the exception of the N‐terminal Aib(1), all Aib residues were introduced by the coupling of the corresponding amino or peptide acids with 2,2‐dimethyl‐2H‐azirine‐3‐(N‐methyl‐N‐phenylamine) ( 1a ) and methyl N‐(2,2‐dimethyl‐2H‐azirin‐3‐yl)‐L ‐prolinate ( 3a ) as the Aib and Aib‐Pro synthons, respectively. Single crystals of two segments, i.e., the N‐terminal hexapeptide Z‐Aib‐Asn(Trt)‐Leu‐Aib‐Pro‐Ser(^tBu)‐OMe ( 23 ) and the C‐terminal octapeptide Z‐Val‐Aib‐Pro‐Aib‐Leu‐Aib‐Pro‐Leuol ( 17 ), were obtained and their structures have been established by X‐ray crystallography. Following the same strategy, the C‐terminal nonapeptide of Trichovirin I 4A, Z‐Ala‐Val‐Aib‐Pro‐Aib‐Leu‐Aib‐Pro‐Leuol ( 26 ), was also synthesized and characterized by X‐ray crystallography.     

Carbophile Additionen von Organocupraten mit 1,3-Thiazol-5(4H)-thionen

Carbophilic Additions of Organocuprates and 1,3-Thiazole-5(4H)-thiones Organocuprates and 1,3-thiazole-5(4H)-thiones 1 react in THF at 0° via carbophilic addition onto the C? S bond to give 4,5-dihydro-1,3-thiazole-5-thiols 3 (Scheme 3). This observation is in marked contrast to the previously described reaction of organolithium compounds and 1 , which undergo a thiophilic addition onto the exocyclic S-atom. As an exception, treatment of the 1,3-thiazole-5(4H)-thione 1a with tert-butyl cuprate leads to 7a (Scheme 3).     

Reactions of Polycyclic Ketones with Dimethoxycarbene; a Convenient Route for a ‘One‐Pot’ Preparation of Some α‐Hydroxycarboxylic Acid Esters

Polycyclic ‘cage’ ketones, such as pentacyclo[5.4.0.0^2,6.0^3,10.0^5,9]undecan‐8‐one ( 10 ), pentacyclo[5.4.0.0^2,6.0^3,10.0^5,9]undecane‐8,11‐dione ( 11 ), and adamantan‐2‐one ( 16 ) were treated with the nucleophilic dimethoxycarbene (DMC; 1 ), which was generated thermally from 2,5‐dihydro‐2,2‐dimethoxy‐5,5‐dimethyl‐1,3,4‐oxadiazole ( 4a ) in boiling toluene. In this ‘one‐pot’ procedure, the α‐hydroxycarboxylic acid ester 12 or a corresponding derivative 15 or 17 was obtained (Schemes 4–7). Additionally, ‘cage’ thione 21 was treated with DMC under the same conditions yielding dimethoxythiirane 22 (Scheme 8). Subsequent hydrolysis or desulfurization (followed by hydrolysis on silica gel) of 22 gave α‐mercaptocarboxylate 25 and the corresponding desulfurized ester 24 , respectively. In all cases, the addition of DMC occurred stereoselectively, and the addition from the exo‐face is postulated to explain the structures of the isolated products.     

Radikalische Cyclisierungen von Alkenyl-substituierten 4,5-Dihydro-1,3-thiazol-5-thiolen

Radical Cyclizations of Alkenyl-Substituted 4,5-Dihydro-1,3-thiazole-5-thiols Heating of 5-alkenyl- or 5-alkinyl-4,5-dihydro-1,3-thiazole-5-thiols of type 5 in the presence of a radical initiator gave dithiaspirobicycles in fair-to-excellent yield (Scheme 3). Under analogous conditions, the 4,5-dihydro-4-vinyl-1,3-thiazole-5-thiol 5d underwent a cyclization to give the annellated dithiabicycle 7 (Scheme 4). In this reaction, a minor product 8 was formed by an unknown reaction mechanism. The structure of 8 was established by X-ray crystallography. The starting 1,3-thiazole-5-thiols 5 have been synthesized by carbophilic alkylation of me C?S group of 1,3-thiazole-5(4H)-thiones with Grignard-reagents or alkylcuprates. The thiazolethiones were obtained by the reaction of 3-amino-2H-azirines with thiobenzoic acid followed by sulfurization and cyclization. The 4-benzyl derivative 1b was thermally rearranged via 1,3-benzyl migration to yield the benzyl (1,3-thiazol-5-yl) sulfide 11 (Scheme 5).