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The iridium(III)/copper(II)-catalyzed dehydrogenative coupling of salicylaldehydes with internal alkynes proceeds efficiently under atmospheric oxygen through aldehyde C-H bond cleavage and decarbonylation. A variety of benzofuran derivatives can be synthesized by the environmentally benign procedure. DFT calculations suggest that this unique transformation involves the facile deinsertion of CO in the key metallacycle intermediate, which is in marked contrast to the corresponding rhodium(III) catalysis that leads to CO-retentive chromone derivatives., (© 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

A new synthetic route to highly fluorescent benzofuranylmethylidenebenzoxasiloles through cationic rhodium(I)/binap complex-catalyzed cascade cycloisomerization of bis(2-ethynylphenol)silanes has been developed involving 1,2-silicon and 1,3-carbon (alkyne) migrations followed by oxycyclization. The present synthesis requires only three steps, starting from commercially available dichlorodiisopropylsilane, which is markedly shorter than our previous synthesis (eight steps starting from commercially available chlorodiisopropylsilane). Theoretical calculations elucidated the mechanism of the above cascade cycloisomerization. This reaction is initiated by the formation of a rhodium vinylidene not through direct 1,2-silicon migration but rather through an unprecedented stepwise 1,5-silicon migration followed by C-Si bond-forming cyclization from a dearomatized allenylrhodium complex. Subsequent 1,3-carbon (alkyne) migration leading to a η 3 -allenyl/propargyl-rhodium complex followed by oxycyclization through π-bond (alkyne) activation with the cationic rhodium(I) complex affords the benzofuranylmethylidenebenzoxasilole product. The structure-fluorescence property relationships of the thus obtained benzofuranylmethylidenebenzoxasiloles were investigated, which revealed that good fluorescence quantum yields were generated in the solution state (φ F =69-87 %) by introduction of electron-donating alkyl and phenyl groups on two phenoxy groups. In the powder state, 4-methyl- and 4-methoxy-phenoxy derivatives exhibited efficient blue fluorescence (φ F =52 % and 46 %, respectively). Especially, the 4-methylphenoxy derivative was thermally stable, and exhibited strong narrow-band fluorescence in the film state (blue, φ F =95 %) and redshifted strong narrow-band fluorescence (green, φ F =90 %) in the crystalline state as a result of the formation of an offset π-stacked dimer; the latter was confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis and by theoretical calculations., (© 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

It has been established that a cyclopentadienyl Rh III complex with two phenyl groups and a pendant amide moiety catalyzes the formal Lossen rearrangement/[3+2] annulation cascade of N-pivaloyl benzamides and acrylamides with alkynes leading to substituted indoles and pyrroles. Mechanistic studies revealed that this cascade reaction proceeds via not the Lossen rearrangement to form anilides or enamides but C-H bond cleavage, alkyne insertion, and the formal Lossen rearrangement., (© 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

The synthesis of alternating donor-acceptor [12] and [16]cycloparaphenylenes (CPPs) has been achieved by the rhodium-catalyzed intermolecular cross-cyclotrimerization followed by imidation and/or aromatization. These alternating donor-acceptor CPPs showed positive solvatofluorochromic properties and smaller HOMO-LUMO gaps compared with nonfunctionalized CPPs, which was confirmed by the theoretical study., (© 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Two isomeric achiral bent-core liquid crystals involving a 4-cyanoresorcinol core and containing a carbosilane unit as nanosegregating segment were synthesized and were shown to form ferroelectric liquid-crystalline phases. Inversion of the direction of one of the COO groups in these molecules leads to a distinct distribution of the electrostatic potential along the surface of the molecule and to a strong change of the molecular dipole moments. Thus, a distinct degree of segregation of the carbosilane units and consequent modification of the phase structure and coherence length of polar order result. For the compound with larger dipole moment (CN1) segregation of the carbosilane units is suppressed, and this compound forms paraelectric SmA and SmC phases; polar order is only achieved after transition to a new LC phase, namely, the ferroelectric leaning phase (SmCLs PS ) with the unique feature that tilt direction and polar direction coincide. The isomeric compound CN2 with a smaller dipole moment forms separate layers of the carbosilane groups and shows a randomized polar SmA phase (SmAPAR ) and ferroelectric polydomain SmCs PS phases with orthogonal combination of tilt and polar direction and much higher polarizations. Thus, surprisingly, the compound with the smaller molecular dipole moment shows increased polar order in the LC phases. Besides ferroelectricity, mirror-symmetry breaking with formation of a conglomerate of macroscopic chiral domains was observed in one of the SmC phases of CN1. These investigations contribute to the general understanding of the development of polar order and chirality in soft matter., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Native α-cyclodextrin- (α-CD) and permethylated α-CD (PMeCD)-based rotaxanes with various short alkylene chains as axles can be synthesized through a urea end-capping method. Native α-CD tends to form [3]- or [5]pseudorotaxanes and not [2]- or [4]pseudorotaxanes, which indicates that the coupled CDs act as a single fragment. End-capping reactions of the pseudorotaxanes with C18 and C24 axle lengths do not occur because the axle termini are covered by the densely stacked CDs. The number of PMeCDs on the pseudorotaxane is flexible and mainly depends on the axle length. Peracetylated α-CD (PAcCD)-based rotaxanes are synthesized through O-acetylation of the α-CD-based rotaxanes without any decomposition of the rotaxanated structures. The structures of PMeCD-based [3]- and [4]rotaxanes, and the molecular dynamics calculations on [3]pseudorotaxanes, indicate that the tail face of PMeCDs is regularly directed toward the axle termini. On the basis of the results obtained, it can be concluded that the directions and numbers of CDs in rotaxanes containing short alkylene chains depend on 1) the interactions between CDs, 2) the length of the alkylene axle, and 3) the interactions between the axle end and tail face of the CD., (© 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

True colors: Novel pyrene analogues of Prodan exhibit outstanding photophysical properties with remarkably high fluorescence quantum yield (QY) in solvents ranging from apolar hexane to polar methanol (see figure). This is accompanied by strong solvatochromism and large Stokes shifts. These properties have not been previously achieved in enormous solvatochromic dyes, but are quite useful for emitting materials and imaging tools., (Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Planar chiral [2]- and [3]rotaxanes constructed from pillar[5]arenes as wheels and pyridinium derivatives as axles were obtained in high yield using click reactions. The process of rotaxane formation was diastereoselective; the obtained [2]rotaxane was a racemic mixture consisting of (pS, pS, pS, pS, pS) and (pR, pR, pR, pR, pR) forms of the per-ethylated pillar[5]arene (C2) wheel, and other possible types of the [2]rotaxane did not form. Isolation of the enantiopure [2]rotaxanes with one axle through (pS, pS, pS, pS, pS)-C2 or (pR, pR, pR, pR, pR)-C2 wheels was accomplished. Furthermore, pillar[5]arene-based [3]rotaxane was successfully synthesized by attachment of two pseudo [2]rotaxanes onto a bifunctional linker. [3]Rotaxane formed in a 1:2:1 mixture with one axle threaded through two (pS, pS, pS, pS, pS)-C2, one (pS, pS, pS, pS, pS)-C2 and one (pR, pR, pR, pR, pR)-C2 (meso form), or two (pR, pR, pR, pR, pR)-C2 wheels. The [3]rotaxane enantiomers and the meso form were successfully isolated using appropriate chiral HPLC column chromatography. The procedure developed in this study is the starting point for the creation of pillar[5]arene-based interlocked molecules., (Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)