Cuihong Li

Beijing Normal University | bnu · College of Chemistry

In this study, two novel donor–acceptor (D–A) copolymers are designed and synthesized, DTBT‐2T and DTBT‐2T2F with 2,2′‐bithiophene or 3,3′‐difluoro‐2,2′‐bithiophene as the donor unit and dithienobenzothiadiazole as the acceptor unit, and used them as donor materials in non‐fullerene organic solar cells (OSCs). Due to enhanced planarity of polymer c...

Three nonfused ring electron acceptors (NFREAs), namely 3TT‐C2‐F , 3TT‐C2‐Cl , and 3TT‐C2 , have been purposefully designed and synthesized with the concept of halogenation. The incorporation of F or/and Cl atoms into the molecular structure ( 3TT‐C2‐F and 3TT‐C2‐Cl ) enhances the π‐π stacking, improves electron mobility, and regulates the nanofibe...

For nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs) based organic solar cells (OSCs), a small HOMO offset favors the high open-circuit voltage (Voc), while a large one facilitates the charge separation. To simultaneously achieve...

End-group modification of non-fullerene acceptors is an effective means of optimizing the device performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). Here, we design and synthesize two isomeric terminal groups which simultaneously carry an electron-withdrawing fluoro group and an electron-donating phenoxy group. The introduction of a phenoxy group decreases...

Three novel small molecular acceptors (SMAs) BO-2F, BO-C8-2F and BO-C2C6-C8-2F were designed and synthesized. These acceptors all possess planar molecular backbone because of the introduction of intramolecular noncovalent interaction. Among them, BO-C2C6-C8-2F with four side chains, which has the highest solubility, can form more appropriate nanomo...

Non-fused ring electron acceptors with varied substituents were developed to construct efficient organic solar cells (OSCs). Out-of-plane rigid substituents such as 2-methylphenyl, 2-tert-butylphenyl and diphenylamine were introduced to the central benzene unit to improve the solubility of non-fused ring acceptors and noncovalent interactions such...

In this work, a ternary blend strategy based on PBDB-T and two small molecular acceptors (IDTT-OB and IDT-PDOT-C6) is demonstrated to simultaneously improve the photocurrent and reduce the voltage loss in organic solar cells (OSCs). The improved photocurrent is partially due to a broad absorption spectrum of the active layer. In addition, we find t...

A series of PDI-based small molecular acceptors (FPDI-I, FPDI-II, F2PDI-I and F2PDI-II) using 9H-fluorene as the central core and two PDI units or two PDI dimer units (PDI2) as the terminal groups have been synthesized. The optical, electrochemical and photovoltaic properties of these four acceptors have been systematically investigated. These acce...

Two simple dithienosilole unit (DTS)-based nonfused small molecular acceptors (SiOC2C6-4F and SiOC2C6-4Cl) using two DTS moieties linked alkoxyl substituted benzene ring as the central core (D) and bis(5,6-difluro-3-oxo-2,3-dihydro-1H-indene-2,1-diylidene)dimalononitrile or bis(5,6-dichloro-3-oxo-2,3-dihydro-1H-indene-2,1-diylidene)dimalononitrile...

We designed and synthesized two non-fullerene acceptors (CDT-TFP and C8X-TFP), which comprise a central 4H-cyclopenta[2,1-b:3,4-b’]dithiophene (CDT) as the bridge and two thiophene-fused perylene diimide (TFP) units. The bulky side chains, such as the 4-hexylphenyl side chains, on the CDT bridge can effectively prevent the acceptor molecules from f...

Two mutually isomeric noncovalently fused-ring electron acceptors (NC-FREAs) NOC6F-1 and NOC6F-2 containing two cyclopentadithiophene (CPDT) moieties linked at the 2,6 or 1,5 positions of naphthalene ring were designed and synthesized for organic solar cells (OSCs). Intramolecular noncovalent S···O interactions were introduced to NOC6F-1 and NOC6F-...

Non-fullerene fused-ring electron acceptors boost the power conversion efficiency of organic solar cells, but they suffer from high synthetic cost and low yield. Here, we show a series of low-cost noncovalently fused-ring electron acceptors, which consist of a ladder-like core locked by noncovalent sulfur-oxygen interactions and flanked by two dicy...

Two novel fused ring electron acceptors PDT and PDT-T have been designed, synthesized and used in organic solar cells. PDT comprises a central 4,10-bis(hexyloxy)-6,6,12,12-tetrakis(4-hexylphenyl)-6,12-dihydropyreno [1,2-b:6,7-b']dithiophene (DDT) donor unit and two flanked 2-(5,6-difluoro-3-oxo-2,3-dihydro-1H-inden-1-ylidene)malononitrile acceptor...

To develop wide bandgap donor materials for high performance nonfullerene polymer solar cells (NF PSCs), bis(carboxylate) substituted benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b]dithiophene (BDT) weak electron acceptor (A) unit was used to polymerize with 5-alkylthiophene-2-yl-substituted BDT or 5-alkylthiothiophene-2-yl-substituted BDT donor unit to construct donor-accepto...

A novel propeller-shaped molecule (HPB-PDI6) with a hexaphenylbenzene (HPB) core and six peripheral PDI units was synthesized by Co2(CO)8-catalyzed cyclotrimerization and used as acceptor for organic solar cells (OSCs). The intriguing geometry of HPB core and the spatial repulsion of PDI rings created a twisted three-dimensional propeller-shaped co...

A novel 1,8-naphthalimide-based small molecular acceptor (NI-T-C8) was designed and synthesized. The LUMO level of NI-T-C8 was high-lying, which would reduce the energy loss of WBG polymer PCDTBT-C12 based devices. When non-fullerene devices based on PCDTBT-C12: NI-T-C8 were spin-coated from substrates with a temperature of 30 °C, the aggregation o...

We designed and synthesized three PDI derivatives (PDI-II, PDI-III and PDI-IV). All these acceptor molecules have a central benzene core and the PDI units are linked to the central benzene core by an acetylene spacer. PDI-II is linear molecule, which bears two flanked PDI units, PDI-III is a c3-symmetrical star-shaped molecule with three peripheral...

To extend the absorption and enhance the electron mobility of fused-ring electron acceptors (FREAs), we designed and synthesized new FREAs (TTIC and TTIC-M) based on 4,9-dihydrothieno[3′,2':4,5]cyclopenta[1,2-b]thieno[2″,3'':3′,4'] cyclopenta[1′,2':4,5]thieno[2,3-d]thiophene (DTCTT) and 1,1-dicyanomethylene-3-indanone (IC). DTCTT unit possesses str...

This data contains additional data related to the article “Influence of Substrate Temperature on the Film Morphology and Photovoltaic Performance of Non-fullerene Organic Solar Cells” (Jicheng Zhang et al., In press) [1]. Data include measurement and characterization instruments and condition, detail condition to fabricate norfullerene solar cell d...

Three-component conjugated polymers P1-1 and P1-2 were prepared by one-pot Stille cross-coupling reaction and applied for polymer solar cell (PSCs). The two-component polymer P1-0 only comprises 5-flouro-6-alkyloxybenzothiadiazole (AFBT) acceptor unit and thiophene donor unit; while the three-component polymers P1-1 and P1-2 contain 10% and 20% 5,6...

Vinylene (V)- and ethynylene (E)-bridged perylene diimide dimers (PDI-V and PDI-E) were designed, synthesized and used as nonfullerene acceptors for polymer solar cells. Our researches revealed that the linkage between two PDI units has a great impact on the molecular geometry, the optical properties, the blend film morphology, the molecular packin...

To explore the influence of fluoro substitution position and number on optical, electrochemical and photovoltaic properties, three novel donor-acceptor (D-A) alternative copolymers (PHF, PFH and PFF) were synthesized by Stille polycondensation of 2,3-diphenyl-5,8-di(thiophen-2-yl)quinoxaline (DTQx) acceptor unit and indacenodithiophene (IDT) donor u...

A novel medium band gap copolymer (PBO) based on benzodithiophene (BDT) and benzoxadiazole (BOz) was synthesized and applied in polymer solar cells (PSCs). The introduction of two alkylthio side chains onto the BDT unit can endow the resulting polymer (PBO) with good solubility in solutions and good crystallinity in the solid state. The low HOMO le...

For the first time, a hyperbranched polymer acceptor, HP-PDI, was designed, synthesized and applied in polymer solar cells (PSCs). Devices based on HP-PDI showed a power conversion efficiency of 2.15%, which is 14 times higher than that of devices based on the small molecular acceptor SM-PDI. The hyperbranched structure can effectively suppress the...

A thermo-cleavable fullerene derivative was used as an interfacial engineering material in planar perovskite solar cells. The modified TiO2 surface shows exceptional resistance against polar solvent washing and the perovskite film grown on it was of high quality with less pinholes. Consequently, high performance devices without hysteresis have been...

Two donor-acceptor alternative copolymers (P1 and P2) with carbazole group as the donor unit and 2,3-diphenylquinoxaline group as the acceptor unit were designed and synthesized by Suzuki polycondensation reaction. Alkoxy groups were linked to meta-position or para-position of phenyl rings, which were attached on the 2,3-position of quinoxaline gro...

Three 1,8-naphthalimide based small molecules (NI-TAT-NI-C8, NI-TAT-NI-C12, and NI-TAT-NI-C16) have been synthesized and used as acceptor materials for wide band gap polymer solar cells. The side chains of the acceptor molecules have a significant influence on the molecular packing, morphology and photovoltaic performance. The octyl and 2-hexyldecy...

Three novel copolymers (PTTAFBT-C0, PTTAFBT-C1 and PTTAFBT-C2) based on thieno[3,2-b]thiophene and 5-alkoxy-6-fluorobenzo-[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole (AFBT) bearing branched alkoxy chains with varied branching positions are synthesized. The influences of the bifurcation positions on intermolecular stacking, charge mobility, film morphology and photovolta...

Three novel 1,8-naphthalimide-based small molecular acceptors (NI-A-C4, NI-A-C6 and NI-A-C8) were designed and synthesized. The LUMO levels of these three small molecules were high-lying, which significantly reduce the energy loss between the wide optical band gap polymer (WBGP) PBDTBT-C12 and the acceptors and result in a high open circuit voltage...

The use of environmentally friendly halogen-free organic solvents for the fabrication of polymer solar cells will be of great importance for future practical applications. In this work, a new alternative conjugated polymer with 3,4-bis(octyloxy)-phenyl substituted benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b]dithiophene as the donor unit and benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole as the...

Four small molecular acceptors (SM1-4) comprising a central benzene core, two thiophene bridges and two 1,8-naphthalimide (NI) terminal groups were designed and synthesized by direct C-H activation. SM1 has a planar chemical structure and forms H-aggregation as films. By attaching different substituents on the central benzene ring, the dihedral ang...

Novel polymers comprising a 3-fluoro-5-alkylthiophenyl benzodithiophene donor unit and a 5-fluoro-6-alkoxy (or alkylthio)-2,1,3-benzothiadiazole (BT) acceptor unit were synthesized. Both POF and PSF possess low HOMO and LUMO energy levels due to the incorporation of fluorine atoms. Additionally, alkoxy and alkylthio substitution on the BT unit also...

Planar heterojunction perovskite solar cells with a high efficiency up to 17.76% are fabricated by modifying the compact TiO2 (c-TiO2 ) with a [6,6]-phenyl-C61 -butyric acid (PCBA) monolayer. High quality CH3 NH3 PbI3 films can be easily fabricated on PCBA-modified c-TiO2 substrates by a one-step solution processing method. Significant improvements...

Two novel polymers PTFBDT-BZS and PTFBDT-BZO with 4-alkyl-3,5-difluorophenyl substituted benzodithiophene as the donor unit, benzothiadiazole or benzooxadiazole as the acceptor unit, and thiophene as the spacer have been synthesized and used as donor materials for polymer solar cells (PSCs). These two polymers exhibited wide optical band gaps of ab...

A new 1,8-naphthalimide based planar small molecular acceptor and two benzothiadiazole based wide band gap (WBG) polymer donors and were synthesized for nonfullerene organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs). Devices based on fluorinated polymer achieved a highly improved PCE of 3.71% with an open circuit voltage (Voc) of 1.07 V, which is beyond the curren...

Three novel copolymers P1–3 with alkylthiophenyl substituted benzodithiophene as the donor unit, thiophene as the spacer, and benzothiadiazole as the acceptor unit have been designed, synthesized, and used as donor materials for polymer solar cells. Polymer solar cells with P3:PC71BM blends as the active layer exhibited a high power conversion effi...

Novel small molecule NI-T-NI with a thiophene core and two 1,8-naphthalimide terminal groups was synthesized by direct C-H activation and used as the acceptor for polymer solar cells. NI-T-NI exhibits a good crystallinity and can form H-aggregation in the solid state. NI-T-NI has a rather high-lying LUMO level, which is beneficial for achieving a h...

Performance enhancement of polymer solar cells (PSCs) is achieved by expanding the absorption of the active layer of devices. To better match the spectrum of solar radiation, two polymers with different band gaps are used as the donor material to fabricate ternary polymer cells. Ternary blend PSCs exhibit an enhanced short-circuit current density a...

A series of novel star-shaped small molecules with triphenylamine as the core, oligothiophene as the spacer and 1,8-naphthalimide as the electron withdrawing end-group were synthesized and used as donor materials for solution-processed organic solar cells. Direct arylation and Suzuki cross-coupling were used to synthesize the key intermediates and...

Three conjugated polymers (P1-3) with benzodithiophene derivatives as the donor unit, 5-(2-hexyldecyloxy)-6-fluoro-4,7-di(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5] thiadiazole as the acceptor unit and thiophene as the spacer were designed, synthesized and used as donor materials for polymer solar cells (PSCs). The influence of side chains at the benzodithiophe...

Two conjugated polymers with benzodithiophene derivatives as the donor unit and planar difluoro-substituted dibenzo[a,c]phenazine as the acceptor unit P1, P2-L and P2-H were designed, synthesized, and used as the donor material in polymer solar cells. P2-H exhibits the highest hole mobility of 1.54 × 10−2 cm2 V−1 s−1. Polymer solar cells (PSCs) wit...

High-molecular-weight conjugated polymer HD-PDFC-DTBT with N-(2-hexyldecyl)-3,6-difluorocarbazole as the donor unit, 5,6-bis(octyloxy)benzothiadiazole as the acceptor unit, and thiophene as the spacer is synthesized by Suzuki polycondensation. HD-PDFC-DTBT shows a large bandgap of 1.96 eV and a high hole mobility of 0.16 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1) . HD-PDFC...

Three donor-acceptor (D-A) alternating conjugated polymers with silafluorene as the donor unit, 5-alkyloxy-6-fluorobenzothiadiazole as the acceptor unit, and thiophene as the spacer has been synthesized and used as donor materials for polymer solar cells (PSCs). The introduction of a fluorine atom on the benzothiadiazole unit can lower the HOMO and...

To achieve 5,6-difluorobenzothiadiazole and 2,7-linked silafluorene based soluble conjugated polymers, flexible side chains were attached at different positions of the conjugated polymers. Three soluble polymers PSiF-D(OT)DFBT, PSiF-TTDFBT, and PDOSiF-DTDFBT were prepared and used as donor materials for polymer solar cells. PSiF-D(OT)DFBT exhibits...

Three novel isoindigo based donor–acceptor (D–A) conjugated polymers P1–3 have been synthesized by Suzuki polycondensation and utilized as donor materials for polymer solar cells (PSCs). These three polymers are of the same backbone, but have different substituents. All these polymers exhibit high thermal stability and broad absorption in the range...

Four novel conjugated polymers (P1-4) with 9,10-disubstituted phenanthrene (PhA) as the donor unit and 5,6-bis(octyloxy)benzothiadiazole as the acceptor unit are synthesized and characterized. These polymers are of medium bandgaps (2.0 eV), low-lying HOMO energy levels (below -5.3 eV), and high hole mobilities (in the range of 3.6 × 10(-3) to 0.02...

9-Arylidene-9H-fluorene containing donor-acceptor (D-A) alternating polymers P1 and P2 were synthsized and used for the fabrication of polymer solar cells (PSCs). High and low molecular weight P1 (HMW-P1 and LMW-P1) and high molecular weight P2 were prepared to study the influence of molecular weight and the position of alkoxy chains on the photovo...

The synthesis, characterization, and photophysical and photovoltaic properties of two anthracene-containing wide-band-gap donor and acceptor (D-A) alternating conjugated polymers (P1 and P2) are described. These two polymers absorb in the range of 300-600 nm with a band gap of about 2.12 eV. Polymer solar cells with P1:PC71 BM as the active layer d...

Alcohol soluble fullerene derivative (FN-C60) has been synthesized and used as a cathode interfacial layer for high-efficiency polymer solar cells (PSCs). To examine the function of FN-C60 interfacial layer, polymer solar cells were fabricated with the blends of P3:PC71BM or HXS-1:PC71BM as the active layer. In comparison to the bare Al electrode,...

Two new triindole-cored star-shaped molecules SM-1 and SM-2 have been designed and synthesized, and their optical, electrochemical, thermal, transport and photovoltaic properties have been investigated in detail. SM-1 and SM-2 exhibited good thermal stability, intensive absorption in a broad region, and relatively high hole mobility. Photovoltaic p...

Three new isoindigo containing donor–acceptor (D–A) type conjugated polymers were synthesized by palladium catalyzed Suzuki polycondensation and used as donor materials for polymer solar cells (PSCs) and field effect transistors (FETs). All the polymers possess good solubility in common organic solvents, high thermal stability, and broad absorption...

Emission of a luminogen could be switched among three colors in the solid state by transformation among three different aggregation states. The partly amorphous solid of the luminogen exhibits excitation dependent emission due to the contribution of both amorphous and crystalline parts to the photoluminescence intensity.

A novel donor-acceptor (D-A) copolymer PDFCDTBT with 3,6-difluoro substituted carbazole as the donor unit and dialkoxy substituted benzothiadiazole as the acceptor unit has been synthesized and used as donor materials for bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells (BHJ PSCs). PDFCDTBT possesses a band gap of 1.75 eV, a low-lying HOMO energy level of -...

High molecular weight thiophene-containing conjugated polymers were successfully synthesized by Suzuki polycondensation of aryl dibromides and 2,5-thiophenebis(boronic acid) derivatives by using a new thiophene-containing bulky phosphorous compound as the ligand for a zerovalent palladium catalyst.

Four ethynylene-containing donor-acceptor alternating conjugated polymers P1–P4 with 2,5-bis(dodecyloxy) substituted phenylene or carbazole as the donor unit and benzothiadiazole (BTZ) as the acceptor unit were synthesized and used as donor polymers in bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells. The optical, electrochemical, and photovoltaic propertie...

Polymethacrylate with semiconducting side chains (P1), synthesized by free radical polymerization, was used as a donor material for polymer solar cells. P1 is of high molecular weight (M(n) = 82 kg mol(-1) ), good thermal stability, narrow band gap (1.87 eV), and low-lying HOMO energy level (-5.24 eV). P1 possesses not only the good film-forming ab...

A highly efficient and perfectly reversible ionic gate that can be activated by pH or UV light is demonstrated. Switching between the OFF state and the ON state is mainly dependent on the surface charge transition brought about by the malachite green derivative attached to the interior surface of an ion track-etched conical nanochannel, which makes...

An efficient and reversible ionic gating that can be activated by pH and light is demonstrated on page 6193 by Lei Jiang, Zhishan Bo, and co-workers, by modifying a malachite green derivative on the interior surface of an ion track-etched conical nanochannel. The switches between the OFF-state and the ON-state are dependent on the surface charge tr...

Three D–A alternating copolymers P1–3 with 3,7-linked 2,8-bis(alkoxy)dibenzothiophene as the donor unit and benzothiadiazole (P1 and P2) or 3,4-bis(octyloxy)benzothiadiazole (P3) as the acceptor unit have been designed and synthesized. P1–3 show two broad absorption peaks in the visible region, and the internal charge transfer (ICT) absorptions at...

Two derivatives of tetraphenylethene (TPE) were synthesized through one step cross McMurry coupling reaction. Both luminogens exhibit aggregation-induced emission (AIE) and crystallization induced emission enhancement (CIEE). The emissions of both luminogens could be switched between blue and green through reversible modulation of morphology with t...

Stepwise locking of phenyl rings of tetraphenylethene increases the emission efficiency of luminogen solutions gradually, thus verifying the restriction of intramolecular rotation (RIR) mechanism of the aggregation induced emission phenomenon. The emission of the luminogen with one "O" bridge could be tuned reversibly in solid state through repeate...

A new alternating copolymer (PSFDTBT) based on spirobifluorene, thiophene, and benzothiadiazole units has been synthesized. PSFDTBT has an optical band gap of 1.97 eV with the low-lying HOMO energy level at −5.4 eV. The hole mobility of the pristine PSFDTBT film spin-cast from o-dichlorobenzene (DCB) solution is 7.26 × 10–3 cm2 V–1 s–1 with on/off...

A series of donor–acceptor (D–A) alternating copolymers (P1, P2 and P3) with thiophene–benzothiadiazole–thiophene–triphenylamine main chain have been synthesized by Suzuki polycondensation. P1, P2, and P3 possess medium optical band gaps of 1.99, 1.97 and 1.93 eV, respectively. Bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells (BHJ PSCs) with these polymers...

Dihydronaphthyl-based [60]fullerene bisadduct derivative, NC(60)BA, was synthesized at mild temperature in high yield. NC(60)BA not only possesses a LUMO energy level 0.16 eV higher than PC(61)BM but also has amorphous nature that can overcome thermal-driven crystallization. The fabricated P3HT:NC(60)BA-based polymer solar cells exhibit superior ph...

Silole-containing conjugated polymers (P1 and P2) carrying methyl and octyl substituents, respectively, on the silicon atom were synthesized by Suzuki polycondensation. They show strong absorption in the region of 300–700 nm with a band gap of about 1.9 eV. The two silole-containing conjugated polymers were used to fabricate polymer solar cells by...

A novel donor–acceptor copolymer containing 9-alkylidene-9H-fluorene unit in the main chain, poly[9-(1′-hexylheptylidene)-2,7-fluorene-alt-5,5-(4′,7′-di-2-thienyl-5′,6′-dialkoxy-2′,1′,3′-benzothiadiazole)] (PAFDTBT), has been synthesized and evaluated in bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells (BHJ PSCs). The polymer possesses a low band gap of 1.8...

The thermochromic and mechanochromic fluorescence of diphenyldibenzofulvenes is investigated. Emission is boosted and blue-shifted upon crystallization. Yellow emissive crystals of the material transform to green fluorescent crystals upon heating before melting. Reversible switching of the emission color and efficiency are achieved by repeated amor...

Ring creation: Shape-persistent macrocyclic structures were prepared by a one-pot catalyst-transfer Suzuki-Miyaura cross-coupling (CTSMCC) reaction (see figure). The reaction of 3,6-dibromo-substituted carbazoles and diboronic ester monomers afforded shape-persistent macrocycles in yields of up to 67%, whereas the use of a traditional catalyst gave...

The synthesis of fully soluble azomethine-bridged ladder-type poly(p-phenylenes) by Bischler-Napieralski reaction was investigated. 60 wt % NaH (0.96 g, 24 mmol) and 1-bromododecane (3.26 g, 13.1 mmol) were added into the solution of 2,7-dibromo-9H-carbazole, (3.27 g, 10.1 mmol), in DMF (40 mL). The mixture was stirred overnight at room temperature...

a b s t r a c t In this feature article, we present a short review on the recent development in the construction of structurally perfect red and blue light-emitting materials and highlight such research in our group. We focus mainly on the three-dimensional conjugated structures such as dendrimers, hyperbranched polymers, star polymers, spirobifluo...

A series of main chain donor-acceptor low-bandgap conjugated polymers were designed, synthesized, and used for the fabrication of polymer solar cells. The absorption spectra of low-bandgap conjugated polymers were tuned by the ratio of three copolymerization monomers. The polymers in films exhibited broad absorption ranging from 300 to 1000 nm with...

A series of polythiophene derivatives P1‐P5 containing carbazole side chains were designed and synthesized via the Stille polymerization. All carbazole containing polymers showed broad absorption in the visible region. The power conversion efficiencies of solar cells based on blends of two component copolymers and [6,6]‐phenyl‐C 61 ‐butyric acid me...

Three new hydrogen bonding [60]methanefullerenes (PCB-t-BA, PCB-n-BA, and MPCB-t-BA) are synthesized, characterized, and presented for measurement of the photovoltaic properties. In comparison with the PCBM molecule, the ester group was substituted with n-butyric or t-butyric alkyl group in the two compounds. Bulk heterojunction (BHJ) organic photo...

An alternating copolymer, poly(2-(5-(5,6-bis(octyloxy)-4-(thiophen-2-yl)benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazol-7-yl)thiophen-2-yl)-9-octyl-9H-carbazole) (HXS-1), was designed, synthesized, and used as the donor material for high efficiency polymer solar cells. The close packing of the polymer chains in the solid state was confirmed by XRD. A J(sc) of 9.6 mA/cm(...

Gold nanoparticles protected by a novel pi-conjugated polymer [poly(p-phenylene ethynylene) containing pendent disulfide and bipyridine groups] are synthesized and characterized. The polymer can stabilize the gold nanoparticles effectively. The nonlinear optical properties of the gold nanoparticle colloid solutions in toluene are investigated by us...

Four metal-free organic dyes (Dye-1, Dye-2, Dye-3, and Dye-4) comprising a triphenylamine moiety as the electron donor, a cyanoacrylic acid or carboxylic acid moiety as the electron acceptor and anchoring groups, and phenylethyne as the bridge were designed at the molecular level and synthesized for use in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Their...

Polyacetylenes, poly( p ‐phenyleneethynylenes), and polydiacetylenes, as conjugated polymers derived from triple‐bond containing building blocks, attain considerable attention because of their electronic and photoconduction properties. In this review, recent studies on the design and synthesis of conjugated polymers derived from triple‐bond buildin...

The third-order nonlinear optical properties of two solutions of gold nanoparticles protected by carbazolyldiacetylene derivatives were investigated using the Z-scan technique. Both gold nanoparticle colloid solutions in toluene show unusual fluorescent enhancement and large third-order nonlinear optical properties including nonlinear absorption an...

A novel route has been developed for surfactant-free synthesis of highly fluorescent gold quantum dots (GQDs) in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF). The as-prepared GQDs show instinctive fluorescence and good solubility in water. The formation mechanism and functionalization of GQDs were investigated by UV−vis spectra, fluorescence excitation and emission...

In this paper, we report on the self-assembly of water-soluble N,N'-di(N,N'-dimethyl-dodecane-1, 12-diamide)-perylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic diimide (PDDoAM) in formic acid and chloride salts for producing varied nano-aggregates with different optical properties. Interestingly, the self-assembly can lead to nanocubic, microsheet and "tower-like"...

An amphiphilic ethynyl-pyrene derivative modified with phosphonic acid groups (PyTOH) was synthesized and characterized. Single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), which carries negative charges, was found to induce the self-assembly of PyTOH through electrostatic interactions with Mg2+ as co-complexation ion in aqueous solution. UV–vis, fluorescence, and circul...

In this paper, we report on the self-assembly of water-soluble N , N′ -di( N , N′ -dimethyl-dodecane-1,12-diamide)-perylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic diimide (PDDoAM) in formic acid and chloride salts for producing varied nano-aggregates with different optical properties. Interestingly, the self-assembly can lead to nanocubic, microsheet and “tower-...

A new poly(p-phenylene ethynylene) derivative with pendant 2,2′-bipyridyl groups and glycol units (PPE-bipy) has been prepared, and its metal ion sensing properties were investigated. The polymer of PPE-bipy exhibited high selectivity for Hg2+ as compared with Li+, Na+, K+, Ba2+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Al3+, Mn2+, Ag+, Zn2+, Pb2+, Ni2+, Cd2+, Cu2+, Co,2+ and...

The nonlinear absorptions and nonlinear refractions of free-base porphyrin (P2) and Zn-porphyrin (ZnP2) were studied using the Z-scan technique at 532 nm with different pulse durations. Both P2 and ZnP2 exhibit reverse saturated absorption attributed to excited-state absorption. The coordination of P2 by Zn ion can alter the nonlinear refraction si...

A [2]rotaxane-based molecular shuttle comprised a macrocycle mechanically interlocked to a chemical "dumbbell" has been prepared in high yields by a thermodynamically controlled, template-induced clipping procedure. This molecular shuttle has two different recognition sites, namely, -NH2 +- and amide, separated by a phenyl unit. The macrocycle exhi...

A novel carbazolyldiacetylene derivative of 5-[1,2]dithiolan-3-ylpentanoic acid 1,6-bis((N-carbazol-3-yl)methyl)-2,4-hexadiyne ester (DCHD-HS) was synthesized. DCHD-HS showed unusual fluorescence enhancement when it was bound to gold nanoparticles. The studies also showed that varied solvents and ratios of ligand/gold particles that served as the d...

The synthesis and sensing characteristics of a new class of colorimetric and fluorometric dual-modal probe for mercury ion are outlined. Judicious placement of two dithia-dioxa-aza macrocycles on the BODIPY chromophore generates this interesting molecule. A highly Hg2+-selective fluorescence enhancing property (>7-fold) in conjunction with a visibl...

An ultrathin composite film containing cationic tetra-pyridine perylene tetracarboxylic acid diimide (TPP-I) and an anionic tetra-sulfuric perylene tetracarboxylic acid diimide (TSP-Na) has been fabricated by the electrostatic layer-by-layer self-assembly technique. UV/Vis spectra showed a continuous and uniform deposition process of TPP-I/TSP-Na....

Highly ordered nanostructures between conjugated polymers and ds-oligonucleotides have been first fabricated by simply controlling the self-assembly processes, which shows a novel concept for fabricating fractal-like structures. The formation of polymer/DNA fractal-like aggregates is a diffusion-limited aggregation (DLA) process. The fractal dimens...

A new amphiphilic polymer containing pyridine units was synthesized and characterized. The solvent-dependent conformational transition from extended transoid to helical cisoid was studied by absorption, fluorescence, and 1H NMR measurements. The polar solvent promoted the formation of the helical structures. A metal ion or H+ could stabilize the or...

A simple and effective strategy for synthesis of bis-dipolar trimeric OPVs (a–g) with same push–pull electron groups at the two ends is presented. Their photophysical and electrochemical properties were investigated by UV–vis, fluorescence spectroscopies, and voltammetry techniques. A successful tuning in the emission color was achieved and the LUM...

A series of oligo(phenylenevinylene)s (OPVs) of different lengths containing aldehyde and dialdehyde groups on the ends were synthesized and characterized. Their photophysical properties were also investigated via ultraviolet–visible, steady-state, and time-resolved fluorescence spectra. The results indicated that the absorption maximum, radiative...

Novel dibenzocoronenetetracarboxylic acid diimide analogues and naphthoperylenetetracarboxylic acid diimide analogues containing imidazole, 1,2,4-triazole, and pyrazole rings embedded as functional constituents within the parent hydrocarbon backbone have been synthesized. The pi-rich and pi-poor heterocycles have different influences on the physica...

A series of new polymers containing porphyrin, poly(p-phenylenevinylene) (PPV), and/or a pendant fullerene unit has been synthesized. The cyclic voltammetry showed us a good candidate for a photoinduced electron-transfer system. More important, the photocurrent measurement revealed an interesting phenomenon that the photocurrent increased with the...

A dual-mode fluorescence switch controlled by external inputs such as protons and metal ions is described, and each state corresponds to a specific fluorescent emission peak. Based on the reversible changes of the fluorescence emission of the switch responding to different external stimuli, the corresponding integrated logic gates and communication...