Progressive Endergonic Synthesis of Diels-Alder Adducts Driven by Chemical Energy.

The overwhelming majority of artificial chemical reaction networks respond to stimuli by relaxing towards an equilibrium state. The opposite response-moving away from equilibrium-can afford the endergonic synthesis of molecules, of which only rare examples have been reported. Here, we report six examples of Diels-Alder adducts formed in an endergonic process and use this strategy to realize their stepwise accumulation.

Control over Dethreading Kinetics Allows Evaluating the Entropy Stored in an Interlocked Molecular Machine Out-of-Equilibrium.

The operation of nanomachines is fundamentally different from that of their macroscopic counterparts. In particular, the role of solvent is critical yet rarely associated with machine functionality. Here, we study a minimal model of one of the most advanced molecular machines to gain control of its operation by engineering components and the employed solvent.

Transfer of Axial Chirality to the Nanoscale Endows Carbon Nanodots with Circularly Polarized Luminescence.

We report the synthesis, purification and characterization of chiral carbon nanodots starting from atropoisomeric precursors. The obtained atropoisomeric carbon nanodots are soluble in organic solvents and have good thermal stability, which are desirable features for technological applications. The synthetic protocol is robust, as it supports a number of variations in terms of molecular doping agents.

Synthesis and applications of amino-functionalized carbon nanomaterials.

Carbon-based nanomaterials (CNMs) have attracted considerable attention in the scientific community both from a scientific and an industrial point of view. Fullerenes, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphene and carbon dots (CDs) are the most popular forms and continue to be widely studied. However, the general poor solubility of many of these materials in most common solvents and their strong tendency to aggregate remains a major obstacle in practical applications.

Solvent-Free Pd-Catalyzed Heteroaryl-Aryl Coupling via C-H Bond Activation for the Synthesis of Extended Heteroaromatic Conjugated Molecules.

Direct arylation of thienopyrrolodione, diketopyrrolopyrroles, benzodithiophene derivatives, and fluorinated heteroarenes with functionalized aryl iodides is proven in solvent-free and non-anhydrous conditions. The reaction is performed in the presence of air and tolerates several functional groups on both the coupling partners, enabling a convenient synthesis of extended heteroaromatic conjugated molecules.