Synthesis, crystal structure and charge transport characteristics of stable -tetracene analogues.

-Acenes have shown great potential for use as functional materials because of their open-shell singlet biradical character. However, only a limited number of -acene derivatives larger than -tetracene have been synthesized to date, presumably owing to the low stability of the target compounds in addition to the complicated synthesis scheme. Here, a very simple synthesis route for the tetrabenzo[,,,]perylene (TBP) structure enables the development of highly stable -tetracene analogues.