Ambipolar Nickel Dithiolene Complex Semiconductors: From One- to Two-Dimensional Electronic Structures Based upon Alkoxy Chain Lengths.

Air-stable single-component ambipolar organic semiconductors that conduct both holes and electrons are highly desired but have been rarely realized. Neutral nickel bis(dithiolene) complexes are promising candidates that fulfill the stringent electronic requirements of shallow HOMO levels and deep LUMO levels, which can reduce the carrier injection barrier to overcome the work function of gold electrodes and ensure air stability. However, most nickel bis(dithiolene) analogs that have been characterized as ambipolar semiconductors have twisted molecular structures that hinder the effective intermolecular interactions required for carrier conduction.

Isotropic Anhydrous Superprotonic Conductivity Cooperated with Installed Imidazolium Molecular Motions in a 3D Hydrogen-Bonded Phosphate Network.

Utilizing molecular motion is essential for the use of anhydrous superprotonic molecular proton conductors (σ beyond 10  S cm ) as electrolytes in hydrogen fuel cells. However, molecular motion contributing to the improvement of intrinsic proton conduction has been limited and little clarified in relation to the proton conduction mechanism, limiting the development of material design guidelines. Here, a salt with a three-dimensional (3D) hydrogen-bonded (H-bonded) phosphate network with imidazolium cations installed inside was studied, whose components are known to exhibit molecular motions that contribute to proton conduction.

Proton-electron-coupled functionalities of conductivity, magnetism, and optical properties in molecular crystals.

Proton-electron-coupled reactions, specifically proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET), in biological and chemical processes have been extensively investigated for use in a wide variety of applications, including energy conversion and storage. However, the exploration of the functionalities of the conductivity, magnetism, and dielectrics by proton-electron coupling in molecular materials is challenging. Dynamic and static proton-electron-coupled functionalities are to be expected.

Conjugation length effect on the conducting behavior of single-crystalline oligo(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (EDOT) radical cation salts.

The conjugation length is a unique structural factor for oligomer-based π-conjugated conductors as it modulates their electronic structures. Herein, we demonstrated the conjugation length effects on conductivity by comparing a dimer and trimer of single-crystalline oligo(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) radical cation salts. The dimer showed a uniform-stacked columnar structure, while the trimer showed stacked columns of the π-dimerized donor and weaker intracolumnar interactions.

The Simplest Model for Doped Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT): Single-crystalline EDOT Dimer Radical Cation Salts.

Invited for the cover of this issue is the group of Tomoko Fujino and Hatsumi Mori at the University of Tokyo. The image depicts the structural information of doped PEDOT uncovered by the single-crystalline EDOT dimer model. Read the full text of the article at .

The Simplest Model for Doped Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT): Single-crystalline EDOT Dimer Radical Cation Salts.

Although doped poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) is extensively used in electronic devices, their molecular-weight distributions and inadequately defined structures have hindered the elucidation of their underlying conduction mechanism. In this study, we introduce the simplest discrete oligomer models: EDOT dimer radical cation salts. Single-crystal structural analyses revealed their one-dimensional (1D) columnar structures, in which the donors were uniformly stacked.

Effect of Alkyl Chain Length on Charge Transport Property of Anthracene-Based Organic Semiconductors.

Anthracene, a simple planar building block for organic semiconductors, shows strong intermolecular interactions and exhibits strong blue fluorescence. Thus, its derivatives have a great potential to integrate considerable charge carrier mobility and strong emission within a molecule. Here, we systematically studied the influence of alkyl chain length on the crystal structures, thermal properties, photophysical characteristics, electrochemical behaviors, and mobilities for a series of 2,6-di(4-alkyl-phenyl)anthracenes (C-Ph-Ants, where represents the alkyl chain length).

Pressure-induced hydrogen localization coupled to a semiconductor-insulator transition in a hydrogen-bonded molecular conductor.

Purely organic crystals, κ-X(Cat-EDT-TTF) [X = H or D, Cat-EDT-TTF = catechol-fused tetrathiafulvalene], are a new type of molecular conductor with hydrogen dynamics. In this work, hydrostatic pressure effects on these materials were investigated in terms of the electrical resistivity and crystal structure. The results indicate that the pressure induces and promotes hydrogen (deuterium) localization in the hydrogen bond, in contrast to the case of the conventional hydrogen-bonded materials (where pressure prevents hydrogen localization), and consequently leads to a significant change in the electrical conducting properties (.

New π-extended catecholato complexes of Pt(ii) and Pd(ii) containing a benzothienobenzothiophene (BTBT) moiety: synthesis, electrochemical behavior and charge transfer properties.

Benzothienobenzothiophene (BTBT) and derivatives have received increasing attention as organic field-effect transistor materials and molecular conductors. This report presents the first synthesis of metal complexes involving a BTBT moiety, which was achieved by complexation of 2,2'-bipyridyl complexes of Pt(ii) and Pd(ii) with dihydroxy-substituted BTBT (1) as a new π-extended catecholato ligand (BuBpy = 4,4'-di-tert-butyl-2,2'-dipyridyl). The resulting complexes M(BuBpy)(OBTBT) (M = Pt (3Pt) and Pd (3Pd)) were characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, density functional theory (DFT) calculations, and cyclic voltammetry.

Strong Hydrogen Bonds at the Interface between Proton-Donating and -Accepting Self-Assembled Monolayers on Au(111).

Hydrogen-bonding heterogeneous bilayers on substrates have been studied as a base for new functions of molecular adlayers by means of atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (IRAS), and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Here, we report the formation of the catechol-fused bis(methylthio)tetrathiafulvalene (HCat-BMT-TTF) adlayer hydrogen bonding with an imidazole-terminated alkanethiolate self-assembled monolayer (Im-SAM) on Au(111). The heterogeneous bilayer is realized by sequential two-step immersions in solutions for the individual Im-SAM and HCat-BMT-TTF adlayer formations.

Improved stability of a metallic state in benzothienobenzothiophene-based molecular conductors: an effective increase of dimensionality with hydrogen bonds.

A dihydroxy-substituted benzothienobenzothiophene, BTBT(OH), was synthesized, and its charge-transfer (CT) salt, β-[BTBT(OH)]ClO, was successfully obtained. Thanks to the introduced hydroxy groups, a hydrogen-bonded chain structure connecting the BTBT molecules and counter anions was formed in the CT salt, which effectively increases the dimensionality of the electronic structure and consequently leads to a stable metallic state.

Theoretical study of the H/D isotope effect on phase transition of hydrogen-bonded organic conductor κ-H(Cat-EDT-TTF).

κ-H(Cat-EDT-TTF) (H-TTF) is a hydrogen-bonded π-electron system which was found to reveal C2/c symmetry at 50-293 K, while its isotopologue, κ-D(Cat-EDT-TTF) (D-TTF), showed the phase transition at 185 K from C2/c to P1[combining macron]. To elucidate the origin of such a difference, we calculated the potential energy curves (PECs) for the hydrogen transfer along the H-bonds in these conductors. We found that both the π-stacking and the hydrogen nuclear quantum effect drastically affected the hydrogen transfer energy.

Synthesis of racemic and chiral BEDT-TTF derivatives possessing hydroxy groups and their achiral and chiral charge transfer complexes.

Chiral molecular crystals built up by chiral molecules without inversion centers have attracted much interest owing to their versatile functionalities related to optical, magnetic, and electrical properties. However, there is a difficulty in chiral crystal growth due to the lack of symmetry. Therefore, we made the molecular design to introduce intermolecular hydrogen bonds in chiral crystals.

Modulation of a Molecular π-Electron System in a Purely Organic Conductor that Shows Hydrogen-Bond-Dynamics-Based Switching of Conductivity and Magnetism.

New important aspects of the hydrogen-bond (H-bond)-dynamics-based switching of electrical conductivity and magnetism in an H-bonded, purely organic conductor crystal have been discovered by modulating its tetrathiafulvalene (TTF)-based molecular π-electron system by means of partial sulfur/selenium substitution. The prepared selenium analogue also showed a similar type of phase transition, induced by H-bonded deuterium transfer followed by electron transfer between the H-bonded TTF skeletons, and the resulting switching of the physical properties; however, subtle but critical differences due to sulfur/selenium substitution were detected in the electronic structure, phase transition nature, and switching function. A molecular-level discussion based on the crystal structures shows that this chemical modification of the TTF skeleton influences not only its own π-electronic structure and π-π interactions within the conducting layer, but also the H-bond dynamics between the TTF π skeletons in the neighboring layers, which enables modulation of the interplay between the H-bond and π electrons to cause such differences.

Solid-solid phase interconversion in an organic conductor crystal: hydrogen-bond-mediated dynamic changes in π-stacked molecular arrangement and physical properties.

Solid-solid phase interconversion was observed in an organic conductor based on a hydrogen-bonded (H-bonded) TTF (tetrathiafulvalene) molecular unit, in which the π-stacked molecular arrangement and physical properties were dynamically changed with unexpected transformation of the H-bond unit between the planar and bent forms.

A biferrocenium salt containing paramagnetic tetracyanoquinodimethane hexamers: charge disproportionation via donor-acceptor interactions.

[Dineopentyl-biferrocene]2[Cl1TCNQ]7, which has an unprecedented high donor-acceptor ratio of 2 : 7, contains a linear paramagnetic hexamer of Cl1TCNQ. Both the donor and acceptor molecules exhibit charge disproportionation in the crystal through mutual electrostatic interactions.

Hydrogen-bond-dynamics-based switching of conductivity and magnetism: a phase transition caused by deuterium and electron transfer in a hydrogen-bonded purely organic conductor crystal.

A hydrogen bond (H-bond) is one of the most fundamental and important noncovalent interactions in chemistry, biology, physics, and all other molecular sciences. Especially, the dynamics of a proton or a hydrogen atom in the H-bond has attracted increasing attention, because it plays a crucial role in (bio)chemical reactions and some physical properties, such as dielectricity and proton conductivity. Here we report unprecedented H-bond-dynamics-based switching of electrical conductivity and magnetism in a H-bonded purely organic conductor crystal, κ-D3(Cat-EDT-TTF)2 (abbreviated as κ-D).

Gapless quantum spin liquid in an organic spin-1/2 triangular-lattice κ-H3(Cat-EDT-TTF)2.

We report the results of SQUID and torque magnetometry of an organic spin-1/2 triangular-lattice κ-H(3)(Cat-EDT-TTF)(2). Despite antiferromagnetic exchange coupling at 80-100 K, we observed no sign of antiferromagnetic order down to 50 mK owing to spin frustration on the triangular lattice. In addition, we found nearly temperature-independent susceptibility below 3 K associated with Pauli paramagnetism.

Synergistic spin transition between spin crossover and spin-Peierls-like singlet formation in the halogen-bonded molecular hybrid system: [Fe(Iqsal)2 ][Ni(dmit)2 ]⋅CH3 CN⋅H2 O.

To introduce halogen-bond interactions between a cation and an anion, a novel Fe(III) complex from iodine-substituted ligands involving a paramagnetic nickel dithiolene anion was prepared and characterized. The compound exhibited the synergy between a spin-crossover transition and a spin-Peierls-like singlet formation. The halogen-bond interactions between the iodine and the sulfur atoms stabilized the paramagnetic state of π-spins and played a crucial role in the synergistic magnetic transition between d- and π-spins.

Biferrocenium salts with magnetite-like mixed-valence iron: coexistence of Fe3+ and Fe(2.5+) in the crystal.

The biferrocene-based salt [Bifc]2[Ni(mnt)2]3 (Bifc = bis(isopropylthio)biferrocene; mnt = maleonitriledithiolate) contains a biferrocenium monocation and dication within the same crystal. The coexistence of Fe(3+) and mixed-valence Fe(2.5+), which resembles the valence state of magnetite, was confirmed by Mössbauer spectroscopy.