Publication: Nonplanar Aromatic Hydrocarbons: Design and Synthesis of Highly Strained Structures

Nonplanar Aromatic Hydrocarbons: Design and Synthesis of Highly Strained Structures

Yasutomo Segawa*

Bull. Chem. Soc. Jpn. 2022, DOI: 10.1246/bcsj.20220270 (Award Account)

Aromatic hydrocarbons are indispensable components of functional organic materials. An sp2-hybridized carbon atom can form a nonplanar structure through an appropriate molecular design, and this structural flexibility enables the construction of a wide variety of nonplanar aromatic hydrocarbons. We have studied the chemistry of nonplanar aromatic hydrocarbons and succeeded in synthesizing highly strained structures. The key to this series of studies is the development of innovative strain-release methods. This account introduces our 10-year research campaign on the synthesis of highly strained nonplanar aromatic hydrocarbons, categorized into (i) ring-shaped arenes (e.g., cycloparaphenylenes), (ii) belt-shaped arenes (e.g., carbon nanobelts), (iii)warped arenes (e.g., warped nanographenes), (iv) helical arenes, and (v) topologically unique arenes.