Dominik Lungerich

Cycle upon cycle: Solvent-free MALDI ion-mobility mass spectrometry is used to analyze an insoluble product mixture of cycloparaphenylenes. For the first time, monocycles and isomeric catenanes can be detected in a simple reaction mixture, where only monocycles could be expected.

[Communication]
Wen Zhang, Ali Abdulkarim, Florian E. Golling, Hans Joachim Räder, Klaus Müllen
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., February 01, 2017, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201611943. Read article

Bridge the gap: Electronic communication (charge transfer and spin coupling) over long covalent distances are achieved by using “pole-like” carbon-bridges between oligophenylene and vinylene units. This communication is demonstrated by using bis(triarylamine)-substituted carbon-bridged oligo(para-phenylenevinylene) cores in their radical cation and dication states.

[Communication]
Paula Mayorga Burrezo, Nai-Ti Lin, Koji Nakabayashi, Shin-ichi Ohkoshi, Eva M. Calzado, Pedro G. Boj, María A. Díaz García, Carlos Franco, Concepciò Rovira, Jaume Veciana, Michael Moos, Christoph Lambert, Juan T. López Navarrete, Hayato Tsuji, Eiichi Nakamura, Juan Casado
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., January 31, 2017, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201610921. Read article

Deep into NIR: A class of bright and stable small-molecule organic fluorophores absorbing and emitting at around 880 nm and 915 nm, respectively, was developed. The dyes are suitable for in vitro and in vivo imaging, and make available the red end of the biological NIR spectral window for microscopic studies. They are also potentially valuable for a range of material-based applications.

[Communication]
Zuhai Lei, Xinran Li, Xiao Luo, Haihong He, Jing Zheng, Xuhong Qian, Youjun Yang
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., January 31, 2017, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201612301. Read article

Within arm's reach: A star-shaped porphyrin-based molecule with four perylene bisimide arms (PBI-Por) was designed as a non-fullerene electron acceptor for application in solar cells. The combination of a donor polymer with PBI-Por in a solar cell resulted in a photoresponse from λ=300 to 850 nm, with a maximum external quantum efficiency (EQE) of almost 0.70, and a promising power conversion efficiency of 7.4 %.

[Communication]
Andong Zhang, Cheng Li, Fan Yang, Jianqi Zhang, Zhaohui Wang, Zhixiang Wei, Weiwei Li
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., January 27, 2017, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201612090. Read article

Abstract

Polycyclic pentalenes with phenanthrene-type π extensions were prepared from 1,4-bis(bromoaryl)-1,3-butadiynes by successive transannular cyclizations of the in situ generated tetrakisdehydro[16]annulenes. These polycyclic pentalenes show not only high thermal stability, but also intriguing absorption and redox properties, due to the pronounced Hückel antiaromaticity.

[Communication]
Hiroya Oshima, Aiko Fukazawa, Shigehiro Yamaguchi
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., January 09, 2017, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201611344. Read article

Extending circumstances: An efficient one-step annulative π-extension reaction of alkynes provides facile access to diarylphenanthrenes and related nanographene precursors. In the presence of a cationic palladium/o-chloranil catalyst system, a variety of diarylacetylenes are transformed through the use of dibenzosiloles or dibenzogermoles as π-extending agents into 9,10-diarylphenanthrenes with good functional-group tolerance.

[Communication]
Kyohei Ozaki, Keiichiro Murai, Wataru Matsuoka, Katsuaki Kawasumi, Hideto Ito, Kenichiro Itami
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., December 21, 2016, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201610374. Read article

Carbon-rich compounds: An all-carbon double [7]helicene has been synthesized by regioselective cyclodehydrogenation. The compound represents the highest homolog of the double carbohelicenes. The twisted conformers D7H-1 and D7H-2 were separated by recrystallization, and their double helicene structures were elucidated by X-ray crystallography.

[Communication]
Yunbin Hu, Xiao-Ye Wang, Pi-Xian Peng, Xin-Chang Wang, Xiao-Yu Cao, Xinliang Feng, Klaus Müllen, Akimitsu Narita
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., December 14, 2016, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201610434. Read article

Let us count the ways… Catalysis by iron–hexadecafluorophthalocyanine enabled the aerobic coupling of diarylamines to form 2,2′-bis(arylamino)biaryl compounds, tetraarylhydrazines, or 5,6-dihydrobenzo[c]cinnolines. The chemoselectivity of these transformations was controlled by acid or base additives (see picture).

[Communication]
Raphael F. Fritsche, Gabriele Theumer, Olga Kataeva, Hans-Joachim Knölker
Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., December 05, 2016, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201610168. Read article