Helicenes, chiral molecules with helical structures, are promising candidates for circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) materials. This review summarizes recent advances in red-to-NIR CPL-active he...

Molecular nanocarbons are critical bridges between small polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and extended graphene lattices, driving advances across materials science, optoelectronics, and quantum technologies. However, the atomically precise synthesis of such systems, particularly those featuring K-region and cove-type topologies, remains an enduring challenge. Here, we present a de novo modular strategy that overcomes this constraint by directing K-region growth via annulation of preorganized aryl acetylnaphthalene precursors with acetylenedicarboxylate. The strategy mirrors the hierarchical construction of pyrene by formally inserting naphthalene fragments into spatially defined molecular scaffolds. This method integrates Suzuki–Miyaura coupling with a Zn(OTf)2-catalyzed cascade comprising Friedel–Crafts alkylation, dehydro-Diels–Alder cycloaddition, and dehydrogenative aromatization. The platform affords structurally diverse pyrene-based molecular nanocarbons with programmable control over topology and dimensionality, spanning linear, contorted, and three-dimensional π-architectures. These results establish a generalizable blueprint for bottom-up synthesis of complex carbon-rich architectures with atomic precision.

Chiral conjugated nanohoops with a central dibenzopentalene unit exhibit 90% spin polarization at low voltage and high conductivity. These properties make them ideal components in molecular spintroni...

A catalytic Joule heating approach is developed for the growth of one-dimensional nanomaterials via a vapour–liquid–solid mechanism under far-from-equilibrium reaction conditions. It demonstrates broa...

The first crystalline diradical dication [9]CPP2•2+ was successfully synthesized via an oxidation reaction under the support of weakly coordinating anion. Both experimental and theoretical analyses c...

Planar oxygen-doped carbon quantum rings (OD-CQRs) are prepared through one-pot solid-state reactions. The synthesized OD-CQRs exhibit a fluorescence peak centre at 393 nm, a full-width at half-maximu...

Shape-persistent conjugated macrocycles have attracted interest for their unique optoelectronic and self-assembly properties, but the syntheses to obtain these structures can be laborious. In this work, we describe the straightforward synthesis of a recently discovered class of macrocycle, the cyclo[n]furan, using Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling of a simple aromatic monomer. We demonstrate that the combination of hexyl 2-bromo-5-(boronic acid pinacol ester)furan-3-carboxylate with tris(dibenzylideneacetone)dipalladium(0), tri-tert-butylphosphonium tetrafluoroborate and cesium fluoride leads to cyclo[6]- and cyclo[7]furan esters in 45% yield (28% and 17%, respectively). Crude 1H NMR spectroscopy revealed that total conversion to macrocycles was 52 ± 6% over 3 runs, highlighting the robustness of this protocol for cyclofuran synthesis. The oligomerizations are rapid, and model compound studies suggest that a chain-growth mechanism may be operative. The hexyl-substituted cyclo[n]furan esters (n = 6 and 7) are separable via column chromatography. The unique optical and electronic features for each cycle can be partially explained by the size difference for the two systems, as well as the increased conformational flexibility for the larger, ester-functionalized cyclo[7]furan.

Herein, we report alternating boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY)-based donor-acceptor (D–A) carbon nanohoops, BCN-1 and BCN-2. These D–A nanohoops exhibit a narrow HOMO–LUMO gap, high molar extinction coef...

Zeng and colleagues presented the delicate manipulation of intramolecular charge-transfer (ICT) characters in organic open-shell systems to yield a class of stable diradicaloids featuring progressively increased contribution of dipolar zwitterionic resonances to their ground- and excited-state electronic structures and tunable NIR-II luminescence with the longest emission peak reaching 1,250 nm. This work established a practical approach toward NIR-II emissive organic diradicals and provided valuable insights into the structural-property relations within these less-explored asymmetric open-shell systems.

Three curved N-doped nanographenes, known as triazasupersumanenes, were synthesized via a versatile synthetic platform, demonstrating their intriguing optoelectronic properties and unexpected p-type transport characteristics. This work not only demonstrates the feasibility of synthesizing nanographenes with tunable properties but also highlights the potential applications of these curved nanostructures in organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) and offers new insights into their functionalization.

In supramolecular electronics, π–π stacked supramolecular dimers serve as precise models to decode how noncovalent interactions govern conductivity, quantum interference (QI), and optoelectronic response. This review explores molecular-scale π–π interaction within single (supra)molecular junctions, tracing methodological advances from early conductance investigations to quantum transport modulations. A key focus lies in manipulating quantum transport through sub-Angstrom mechanical control, where stacking geometries and electronic coupling enable tunable conductance states. Beyond fundamental insights, we highlight the transformative potential of π–π stacked junctions in nanoelectronics, including supramolecular switches, nonvolatile memories, diodes and rectifiers, quantum-interference devices, and supramolecular transistors. Their integration with scalable assembly techniques bridges molecular adaptability and circuit functionality, offering pathways to surpass von Neumann architectures through cooperative π-electron phenomena.

Non-planar nanographenes are materials with promising prospects for chiroptical and optoelectronic applications. Now bilayer molecular nanographenes composed of two hexa-peri-haxabenzocoronene units l...

C 3-symmetric aromatic triimides (ATIs) represent an interesting class of electron-deficient molecular backbones, characterized by π-conjugated aromatic cores symmetrically substituted with th...

Nature Reviews Materials, Published online: 04 April 2025; doi:10.1038/s41578-025-00792-4The development of low-cost and high-performance organic photovoltaic materials is critical for the industrialization of organic photovoltaic technology. This Review discusses the key structural features of high-performance materials, summarizes advancements in low-cost donors and acceptors and outlines future molecular design strategies.

Adjusting the conditions of Scholl reactions has enabled the selective synthesis of polycyclic arenes with two related π-skeletons. One π-skeleton is a key fragment of theoretical carbon schwarzites,...

Bright near-infrared fluorophores are in demand for microscopy. We showcase a deuterated oxazine being 23% brighter vs. ATTO700. With a longer lifetime of 1.85 nanoseconds, we find the best-in-class S...

It is known that NICS values can be misinterpreted to indicate aromaticity (or antiaromaticity) when measured in nonaromatic rings next to antiaromatic (or aromatic) ones. But how does this effect ch...