B. F. Minaev

Design of nanoscaled materials based on tetraoxa[8]circulene

Nanotubes and two-dimensional sheet-like compounds containing tetraoxa[8]circulene core units are theoretically predicted. The large cavities with a diameter of 6 Å in the 2D sheets could be useful for hydrogen storage. The designed compounds are predicted to adsorb strongly in the visible region and to be a promising material for nanophotonics because of their electron-donor properties (p-type semiconductors).

The art of the possible: computational design of the 1D and 2D materials based on the tetraoxa[8]circulene monomer

Novel one- and two-dimensional π-conjugated materials containing a tetraoxa[8]circulene monomer are designed on the basis of density functional theory techniques, including the periodic boundary condition for the infinite structures. These new materials are predicted to be the perspective ambipolar organic semiconductors showing a high mobility for hole and electron charge carriers. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the extension of π-conjugated tetraoxa[8]circulene units in the second dimension leads to a material with the HOMO–LUMO gap being significantly smaller than that for the 1D polymer ribbon. This fact clearly indicates the fundamental difference between the designed 1D and 2D semiconducting polymers, which constitutes the essence of modern “band-gap engineering”. The consistent growth of π-conjugation determines the strong visible light absorption of the studied systems in a great contrast to the initial lack of color of the tetraoxa[8]circulene compound. The possible chemical routes to synthesize the predicted materials are discussed, including free Gibbs energy estimation for the proposed reactions.

A comparative study of the electronic structure and spectra of tetraoxa[8]circulene and octathio[8]circulene

The electronic structure and spectra of two highly symmetric molecules of circulenes, namely, tetraoxa[8]circulene and octathio[8]circulene, which belong to the symmetry point groups D4h and D8h, respectively, have been investigated by the density functional theory (DFT) method using the hybrid functional B3LYP in the 6–31G(d) basis set. The infrared (IR) spectra of these molecules in the ground and excited triplet states have been compared. The comparison of the electronic absorption spectra of both molecules has revealed that the first electronic transition is forbidden and determined by the electronic-vibrational interaction due to the degenerate eu modes. The ability of the studied circulenes to fluoresce and phosphoresce has been analyzed, because these compounds are of interest as promising materials for organic light-emitting diodes.

Quantum-chemical study of the structure and optical properties of sensitized dyes of an indoline-thiazolidine series

Based on the density functional theory, quantum-chemical calculations of the structure and electronic absorption spectra of the molecules D102, D149, and D205 of an indoline-thiazolidine series, which are used as sensitizers for solar cells, are performed. Circular dichroism spectra are predicted. The mechanisms by which intra- and intermolecular electron transfer occur upon excitation to a triplet state, as well as the relaxation mechanism, are described. The geometric and electronic structures of the molecules under study in the ground singlet and excited triplet states are considered, and the relation between their structure and photochemical properties is discussed.

Alkali and alkaline-earth metal complexes with tetraoxa(8)circulene sheet: a computational study by DFT and QTAIM methods†

A series of alkali and alkaline-earth metal ion complexes with the tetraoxa[8]circulene sheet which possess single- and double-decker structure has been designed and studied by the DFT computational method. Baders topological analysis of the electron density distribution function has been also performed for the studied complexes with the aim to determine their peculiar electronic features. The obtained computational results indicate the definite selectivity in respect to complexation of the s-block metal ions with the tetraoxa[8]circulene-formed nanopores of various sizes. The coordination bonds of the s-block metal centers with the neighbouring oxygen atoms in the studied complexes possess predominantly ionic nature and can be interpreted as low-covalence closed-shell interactions. The total complexation energy for the studied systems has been estimated to be in a wide range of 9–60 kcal mol−1 which indicates their different stability depending on the nanopore size and metal ion radii. For these reasons the synthesis of the tetraoxa[8]circulene sheets is an important task because of their potential applications as biomimetic-type nanopores representing synthetic ionic channels.

Quantum-chemical study of effect of conjugation on structure and spectral properties of C105 sensitizing dye

The structure and spectral properties of two organic ruthenium complexes used as sensitizing dyes for solar batteries (well-known N3 dye and its selenophene-conjugated analogue C105 ([Ru(bpy)(bpysef)(COOH)2(NCS)2] (bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine, bpysef = 4,4′-bis(5-hexylselenophene-2-yl)2,2′-bipyridine)) are comparatively studied within the density functional method. It is shown that the conjugation of the bipyridine ligand with selenophene affects the electronic structure of the C105 dye. A multilevel model for interpreting the electronic spectra of dyes is proposed based on the analysis of the shapes of molecular orbitals. The nature of the absorption bands of these ruthenium complexes in the region of 300–800 nm is explained. It is found that, in the polar acetonitrile solvent, these dyes are negatively solvatochromic, which agrees with the current classical views on the effect of the solvent on the shape of electronic absorption spectra of related compounds.

Theoretical Study of Vibration Spectra of Sensitizing Dyes for Photoelectrical Converters Based on Ruthenium(II) and Iridium(III) Complexes

Quantum-chemical method of the density functional theory was employed to calculate, with the use of a B3LYP hybrid exchange-correlation functional, the IR absorption and Raman spectra of [Ru(bpy)2(CN)2] and [Ir(bpy)2(CN)2]+ complexes. All the normal vibrational frequencies were analyzed and new assignments of a number of bands in the IR absorption and Raman spectra were made. The role of vibrational motions of metal atoms and ligands in the vibronic deformation of electron shells in the course of electron transfer was discussed. This was done using data on surface-enhanced Raman spectra of [Fe(bpy)2(CN)2] and [Ru(bpy)3]2+ complexes adsorbed on the surface of colloid silver.

Electronic structure, aromaticity and spectra of hetero[8]circulenes

The present review highlights recent advances in experimental and theoretical chemistry dealing with investigation of the electronic structures and physicochemical properties of hetero[8]circulenes. These compounds are the only representatives of planar heteroannulated cyclooctatetraenes. It is shown that high molecular symmetry of hetero[8]circulenes and the extended specific π-conjugated chain are the main factors responsible for high stability of the crystal packing modes and the optical and magnetic properties of these compounds. These effects also determine numerous selection rules for electronic and vibrational transitions in UV-Vis, IR and Raman spectra. Emphasis is given to the aromaticity of hetero[8]circulenes containing the inner antiaromatic cyclooctatetraene core. The planar structure of the latter is stabilized by a polyaromatic system composed of benzene rings and five-membered heterocycles. Due to high thermal and chemical stability of most hetero[8]circulenes combined with semiconducting properties, these compounds can be considered as promising materials for molecular electronics and nanophotonics, in particular for the production of organic light-emitting diodes and field-effect transistors. The bibliography includes 154 references.

Quantum-chemical study of structure and spectral properties of triphenylamine-rhodanine dye 2-(5-(4-(diphenylamine)benzylidene)-4-oxo-2-thioxothiazolidine-3-yl) acetic acid

The structure and optical properties of triphenylamine-rhodanine dye 2-(5-(4-(diphenylamine)benzylidene)-4-oxo-2-thioxothiazolidine-3-yl) acetic acid, which is used as a sensitizer for nanocrystalline TiO2 solar cells, are studied based on the density functional theory. The nature of the absorption of this dye in the visible and near UV regions is discussed within the time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT). The calculations of the vertical excitation energies of the dye molecule taking into account the effect of solvent reveal a strong positive solvatochromic effect compared to the calculations in the vacuum approximation. The IR absorption bands of this dye in the region of 600–1850 cm−1 are completely interpreted.

Application of Bader’s atoms in molecules theory to the description of coordination bonds in the complex compounds of Ca2+ and Mg2+ with methylidene rhodanine and its anion

In the framework of Bader’s atoms in molecules theory a complete analysis of the distribution function of electron density in molecules of complexes of Ca2+ and Mg2+ with methylidene rhodanine and its anion was carried out. The role of mutual polarization of the metal cation and the ligand in the formation of coordination bonds was demonstrated. The accumulation of electron density in the interatomic space of coordination bonds is assumed to be a consequence of the deformation of the ligand electron shell under the influence of the cation electric field. Based on the magnitude and sign of the Laplacian and the electron energy density at the critical points of coordination bonds the interactions were classified the in terms of the atoms in molecules theory. The energy of the coordination bonds was evaluated using the Espinoza’s formula. The stability of metal-containing rings was considered basing on the values of the bond ellipticity.