Designs of Functional [pi]-Electron Materials based on the Characteristic Features of Boron

• Published in: Bulletin of the Chemical Society of Japan Vol. 88; no. 10; p. 1357
• Main Authors: Wakamiya, Atsushi, Yamaguchi, Shigehiro
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tokyo Chemical Society of Japan 01.10.2015
• ISSN: 0009-2673; 1348-0634

Boron, a group 13 element, has several characteristic structural and electronic features: 1) trivalent boron compounds usually adopt a trigonal planar geometry; 2) due to the presence of a vacant p-orbital, effective orbital interaction with [pi]-conjugated compounds is possible; 3) the presence of a vacant p-orbital is furthermore responsible for high Lewis acidity; 4) the boryl group acts as a [pi]-electron-accepting group particularly in the excited state. The consequent exploitation of these characteristic features of boron in the molecular design enables us to produce sophisticated [pi]-functional materials with attractive photophysical and electronic properties. This account article illustrates our systematic studies on the molecular design and the development of functional [pi]-electron materials using boron as a key element.