Synthesis of a double-stranded spiroborate helicate bearing stilbene units and its photoresponsive behaviour

HPC resources of CINES and of IDRIS under the allocations 2013-[x2013080649] made by GENCI (Grand Equipement National de Calcul Intensif)International audienceA novel spiroborate-based double-stranded helicate bearing photoresponsive cis-stilbene units in the middle (cis-3) was successfully synthesised from the corresponding cis-stilbene-bound tetraphenol strand in the presence of NaBH4, whereas the tetraphenol strands with a trans-stilbene or trans-azobenzene unit did not form such a double-stranded helicate. The 1H NMR and NOESY experiments revealed that cis-3 adopted contracted (cis-3C) and extended (cis-3E) forms under equilibrium in CD3CN at 25 °C. The contracted cis-3C that accommodated a Na+ ion in the center showed an almost reversible extension and contraction motion by removal and addition of a Na+ ion. The cis-to-trans photoisomerisation of the extended cis-3E with UV light (295 nm) further induced an extension of the helicate, producing a mixture of cis,trans-3E and trans-3E helicates at the photostationary state. However, trans-to-cis photoisomerisation of the trans-mixtures using UV light (360 nm) was irreversible in this system and produced the photooxidated aldehyde species (trans-4), resulting from the photo-cleavage of the trans-stilbene moieties of the trans-3E

Synthesis and chiral recognition ability of helical polyacetylenes bearing helicene pendants

International audienceNovel polyacetylenes bearing an optically active or racemic [6]helicene unit as the pendant groups directly bonded to the main-chain (poly-1s) were prepared by the polymerization of the corresponding acetylenes (1-rac, 1-P, and 1-M) with a rhodium catalyst. The optically active polyacetylenes (poly-1-P and poly-1-M) formed a preferred-handed helical conformation biased by the optically active helicene pendants, resulting in the induced circular dichroism (ICD) in their π-conjugated polymer backbone regions. The optically active helical polymers, when employed as an enantioselective adsorbent, showed a high chiral recognition ability towards racemates, such as the monomeric [6]helicene and 1,1’-binaphthyl analogues, and enantioselectively adsorbed one of the enantiomers

Synthesis of Single-Handed Helical Spiro-Conjugated Ladder Polymers through Quantitative and Chemoselective Cyclizations

We report the unprecedented synthesis of one-handed helical spiro-conjugated ladder polymers with well-defined primary and secondary structures, in which the spiro-linkeddibenzo[a,h]anthracene fluorophores are arranged in a one-handed twisting direction, through quantitative and chemoselective acidpromoted intramolecular cyclizations of random-coil precursor polymers composed of chiral 1,1’-spirobiindane and achiral bis[2-(4-alkoxyphenyl)ethynyl]phenylene units. Intense circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) were observed, whereas the precursor polymers exhibited negligible CD and CPL activities. The introduction of 2,6-dimethyl substituents on the 4- alkoxyphenylethynyl pendants is of key importance for this simple,quantitative, and chemoselective cyclization. This strategy is applicable to the defect-free precise synthesis of other varieties of fully p-conjugated molecules and coplanar ladder polymers that have not been achieved before.</div