Synthesis of hexa-peri-hexabenzocoronenes - from building blocks to functional materials

Discotic hexa-peri-hexabenzocoronene (HBC) derivatives have attracted intensive scientific interest due to their unique optoelectronic properties, which depends, to a large extend, upon the attached functional groups. The presented work covers the synthesis of novel HBC building blocks and new HBC derivatives as functional materials. The traditional preparation of HBC derivatives requires elaborate synthetic techniques and tremendous effort. Especially, more than 10 synthetic steps are usually necessary to approach HBCs with lower symmetries. In order to simplify the synthetic work and reduce the high costs, a novel synthetic strategy involving only four steps was developed based on 2,3,5,6-tetraphenyl-1,4-diiodobenzene intermediates and palladium catalyzed Suzuki cross coupling reactions. In order to introduce various functionalities and expand the diversity of multi-functionalizations, a novel C2v-symmetric dihalo HBC building block 2-47, which contains one iodine and one bromine in para positions, was prepared following the traditional intermolecular [4+2] Diels-Alder reaction route. The outstanding chemical selectivity between iodo and bromo groups in this compound consequently leads to lots of HBC derivatives bearing different functionalities. Directly attached heteroatoms will improve the material properties. According to the application of intramolecular Scholl reaction to a para-dimethoxy HPB, which leads to a meta-dimethoxy HBC, a phenomenon of phenyl group migration was discovered. Thereby, several interesting mechanistic details involving arenium cation intermediates were discussed. With a series of dipole functionalized HBCs, the molecular dynamics of this kind of materials was studied in different phases by DSC, 2D WAXD, solid state NMR and dielectric spectroscopies. High charge carrier mobility is an important parameter for a semiconductive material and depends on the degree of intramolecular order of the discotic molecules in thin films for HBC derivatives. Dipole – dipole interaction and hydrogen bonds were respectively introduced in order to achieve highly ordered supramolecular structure. The self-assembly behavior of these materials were investigated both in solution and solid state. Depending upon the different functionalities, these novel materials show either gelating or non-linear optical properties, which consequently broaden their applications as functional materials. In the field of conceivable electronic devices at a molecular level, HBCs hold high promise. Differently functionalized HBCs have been used as active component in the studies of single-molecular CFET and metal-SAMs-metal junctions. The outstanding properties shown in these materials promise their exciting potential applications in molecular devices.

Synthesis of new xanthene derivatives

Xanthene dyes, including fluorescein, are a well-known class of fluorescent dyes, which have widespread applications in natural sciences. The synthesis of xanthene derivatives via acid catalyzed condensation of substituted phenols with phthalic anhydride, to afford the asymmetric derivatives, is well established. The high temperature, harsh reaction conditions and often low yields make this method less convenient. The synthesis of xanthene dyes by direct modification of the fluorophore moiety is a great option to circumvent the above mentioned drawbacks. rnOur new synthetic strategy for the preparation of novel asymmetric xanthene dyes via direct conversion of hydroxyl groups on 3'- and 6'-positions into leaving groups by mesylation is reported. It was discovered that 3',6'-di-mesylated fluorescein underwent a nucleophilic aromatic substitution with sulfur nucleophiles and afforded new asymmetric xanthene sulfides. rnThe impact of substituents possessing an electron-withdrawing character such as chlorines and bromines was investigated with the aim to improve the aromatic substitution on the electron-rich fluorescein structure. It was observed that the incorporation of these groups did not considerably affect the substitution reaction and the yields were comparable with the unsubstituted fluorescein. rnThis strategy provided novel fluorescent probes with the linker suitable to further modifications. The modifications of the linker delivered fluorescein derivatives that could be used as fluorescent labels in peptides, oligonucleotides and for cell imaging. rnThe hydroxyl group on the linker was modified to achieve potent bioconjugate functionality such as azide. The new fluorescent azides were obtained in a 4-step synthesis, namely 2-(6-(2-azidoethylthio)-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl)benzoic acid with an overall yield of 13%, its 2',7'-dichloro derivative with an overall yield of 10% and its 2',4',5'-tribromo derivative with an overall yield of 1%, respectively. rnAn asymmetric xanthene sulfide with an amino functionality placed on the aliphatic linker, namely 2-(6-((2-aminoethyl)thio)-3-oxo-3H-xanthen-9-yl)benzoic acid, was obtained in a 3-step synthesis with an overall yield of 33%. rnThe impact of the substitution with sulfur nucleophiles on the 6'-position of the xanthene moiety on its fluorescent characteristics was investigated. In comparison with fluorescein new asymmetric xanthene sulfides afforded lower extinction coefficients and fluorescent quantum yields. On the other hand, the substitution with a sulfur nucleophile significantly improved the photostability of xanthene dyes. It was shown that after 10 hours of continuous excitation, the asymmetric sulfur-containing xanthene fluorophores exhibited 58-94% of their initial fluorescent intensities. This observation suggested that the novel dyes were 1-2 orders of magnitude more stable than fluorescein. rnThe azido-modified xanthenes were “clicked” via Cu(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition with an oligonucleotide, which contained the terminal alkyne residue. rn

Synthesis of carbolines and analogues via rhodhium-catalyzed [2+2+2] cycloaddition with alkynyl-ynamides : application to the total synthesis of alkaloids

The main research theme of this dissertation is the synthesis of g- and b-carbolines using a metal-catalyzed [2+2+2] cycloaddition strategy of tethered alkynyl-ynamides (diynes) with nitriles. g- and b-carbolines form the core of a large group of natural product and represent important targets for organic chemists. Many of these carbolines showed pharmacological effects ranging from anti-tumor to anxiolytic and anti-HIV activity. A model study with N-Ethynyl-N-tosyl-2-(2-phenylethynyl)aniline and methyl cyanoformate showed that rhodium-based catalysts promote efficiently the reaction. A further optimization showed that the regioselectivity of the reaction can be tuned by the choice of the solvent or by the catalytic system. Application to a larger scope of diynes showed that the regioselectivity strongly depends on the type of substitution of the alkynyl moieties, giving regioselectivities in the range g:b = 1/0 to g:b = 0/1. This [2+2+2] cycloaddition approach for the synthesis of the g- and b-carboline cores was successfully applied to the first total synthesis of Isoperlolyrine and the total synthesis of Perlolyrine. Extension of this strategy to heterocumulenes as cycloaddition partners allowed the synthesis of a g-carbolinone, a thiopyrano[3,4-b]indol-3-imine and thiopyranothiones.

Bottom-up solution synthesis of structurally defined graphene nanoribbons

Graphene nanoribbons (GNRs), which are defined as nanometer-wide strips of graphene, are attracting an increasing attention as one on the most promising materials for future nanoelectronics. Unlike zero-bandgap graphene that cannot be switched off in transistors, GNRs possess open bandgaps that critically depend on their width and edge structures. GNRs were predominantly prepared through “top-down” methods such as “cutting” of graphene and “unzipping” of carbon nanotubes, but these methods cannot precisely control the structure of the resulting GNRs. In contrast, “bottom-up” chemical synthetic approach enables fabrication of structurally defined and uniform GNRs from tailor-made polyphenylene precursors. Nevertheless, width and length of the GNRs obtainable by this method were considerably limited. In this study, lateral as well as longitudinal extensions of the GNRs were achieved while preserving the high structural definition, based on the bottom-up solution synthesis. Initially, wider (~2 nm) GNRs were synthesized by using laterally expanded monomers through AA-type Yamamoto polymerization, which proved more efficient than the conventional A2B2-type Suzuki polymerization. The wider GNRs showed broad absorption profile extending to the near-infrared region with a low optical bandgap of 1.12 eV, which indicated a potential of such GNRs for the application in photovoltaic cells. Next, high longitudinal extension of narrow (~1 nm) GNRs over 600 nm was accomplished based on AB-type Diels–Alder polymerization, which provided corresponding polyphenylene precursors with the weight-average molecular weight of larger than 600,000 g/mol. Bulky alkyl chains densely installed on the peripheral positions of these GNRs enhanced their liquid-phase processability, which allowed their formation of highly ordered self-assembled monolayers. Furthermore, non-contact time-resolved terahertz spectroscopy measurements demonstrated high charge-carrier mobility within individual GNRs. Remarkably, lateral extension of the AB-type monomer enabled the fabrication of wider (~2 nm) and long (>100 nm) GNRs through the Diels–Alder polymerization. Such longitudinally extended and structurally well-defined GNRs are expected to allow the fabrication of single-ribbon transistors for the fundamental studies on the electronic properties of the GNRs as well as contribute to the development of future electronic devices.