Photomechanochemistry: harnessing mechanical forces to enhance photochemical reactions

• Francesco Mele,
• Ana M. Constantin,
• Andrea Porcheddu,
• Raimondo Maggi,
• Giovanni Maestri,
• Nicola Della Ca’ and
• Luca Capaldo

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 458–472, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.33

• observed in dilute solutions because of the formation of aggregates perturbing electronic transitions [51][52][53]. Moreover, at high concentrations, the formation of electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complexes [54] or exciplexes is expected to be favored, and the effect of mechanical forces on these is worth

Red light excitation: illuminating photocatalysis in a new spectrum

• Lucas Fortier,
• Corentin Lefebvre and
• Norbert Hoffmann

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 296–326, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.22

• of the DCA, photodegraded species issued from DCA or DCA•−/substract donor–acceptor complex is debated (Scheme 4b). Nevertheless, the authors underline that the key feature of these transformations is going through the consecutive absorption of two red-light photons which enhances the photoredox

Quantifying the ability of the CF₂H group as a hydrogen bond donor

• Matthew E. Paolella,
• Daniel S. Honeycutt,
• Bradley M. Lipka,
• Jacob M. Goldberg and
• Fang Wang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2025, 21, 189–199, doi:10.3762/bjoc.21.11

• (CF2H); fluorine; hydrogen bond donors; hydrogen bond strength; Introduction Hydrogen bonding interactions are ubiquitous non-covalent forces in chemistry and biology [1][2][3][4]. In canonical hydrogen bond (HB) donor–acceptor pairs, the donor typically comprises an electronegative heteroatom, such as

Synthesis of acenaphthylene-fused heteroarenes and polyoxygenated benzo[j]fluoranthenes via a Pd-catalyzed Suzuki–Miyaura/C–H arylation cascade

• Merve Yence,
• Dilgam Ahmadli,
• Damla Surmeli,
• Umut Mert Karacaoğlu,
• Sujit Pal and
• Yunus Emre Türkmen

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3290–3298, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.273

• -catalyzed annulation reaction between bromo-chloronaphthalene dicarboximides 6 and heteroarylboronic esters that enabled the syntheses of acenaphthylene-fused thiophene and indole derivatives 7 having donor-acceptor units (Scheme 1a) [40]. In 2021, Jin and co-workers developed an elegant Pd-catalyzed

Giese-type alkylation of dehydroalanine derivatives via silane-mediated alkyl bromide activation

• Perry van der Heide,
• Michele Retini,
• Fabiola Fanini,
• Giovanni Piersanti,
• Francesco Secci,
• Daniele Mazzarella,
• Timothy Noël and
• Alberto Luridiana

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3274–3280, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.271

• photochemistry has introduced new ways of generating radicals like photoredox catalysis and via electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complexes [10][11][12][13]. These advances, coupled with modern electrochemical methods, chemical reactor engineering and light emitting diodes (LED), have eliminated the need for thermal

Extension of the π-system of monoaryl-substituted norbornadienes with acetylene bridges: influence on the photochemical conversion and storage of light energy

• Robin Schulte,
• Dustin Schade,
• Thomas Paululat,
• Till J. B. Zähringer,
• Christoph Kerzig and
• Heiko Ihmels

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3061–3068, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.254

• sunlight. Furthermore, the photoisomerization quantum yield is very low and therefore not suitable for an application [7][8][14]. One promising way to overcome these disadvantages is the introduction of a donor–acceptor system at the norbornadiene double bonds, which has resulted in the development of new

Tunable full-color dual-state (solution and solid) emission of push–pull molecules containing the 1-pyrindane moiety

• Anastasia I. Ershova,
• Sergey V. Fedoseev,
• Konstantin V. Lipin,
• Mikhail Yu. Ievlev,
• Oleg E. Nasakin and
• Oleg V. Ershov

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 3016–3025, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.251

• solutions of compounds 1a–i in toluene (top) and DMSO (bottom) taken under a 365 nm UV lamp. Normalized solid-state emission spectra of compounds 1a–i (bottom) and photos of powders taken under a 365 nm UV lamp (top). Synthesis of donor–acceptor 1-pyrindane derivatives 1. Plausible equilibrium of compounds

The charge transport properties of dicyanomethylene-functionalised violanthrone derivatives

• Sondos A. J. Almahmoud,
• Joseph Cameron,
• Dylan Wilkinson,
• Michele Cariello,
• Claire Wilson,
• Alan A. Wiles,
• Peter J. Skabara and
• Graeme Cooke

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2921–2930, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.244

• leads to the formation of large crystalline domains which influence charge transport. However, the microscale domains reduce the donor–acceptor interface which ultimately impacts on efficient exciton dissociation in OPV devices [12]. Therefore, it is important to further investigate other fused π

Recent advances in transition-metal-free arylation reactions involving hypervalent iodine salts

• Ritu Mamgain,
• Kokila Sakthivel and
• Fateh V. Singh

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2891–2920, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.243

• assist in the deprotonation of intermediate II to produce final products 27, while K2S2O8 aids in the oxidation of the photocatalyst in the case of pyridine N-oxide. In another photoinduced reaction procedure, Murarka et al. reported the formation of aryl radicals from a tetrameric electron donor

• –acceptor (EDA) complex. The complex is formed of triphenylphosphine, sodium iodide and N,N,N,N-tetramethylethylenediamine (TMEDA) with diaryliodonium reagents (DAIRs) [64]. This activates DAIRs 16 to generate an aryl radical which is utilized in the C–H arylation of various heterocycles 31 to yield the

Synthesis of spiroindolenines through a one-pot multistep process mediated by visible light

• Francesco Gambuti,
• Jacopo Pizzorno,
• Chiara Lambruschini,
• Renata Riva and
• Lisa Moni

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2722–2731, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.230

• optimized conditions. Based on the literature [28], the formation of an electron donor–acceptor complex between bromochloroform and N-Ar-THIQ seems essential for the reaction to occur. Since we did not observe the formation of any color during the irradiation of the solution of BrCCl3 and this specific THIQ

• Scheme 6. Based on the results reported by Zeitler [28], several mechanisms are involved in the oxidation of N-Ph-THIQ. The most probable involves the photoexcitation of the EDA (Electron Donor-Acceptor) complex promoting an electron transfer from N-Ph-THIQ to BrCCl3 to afford the amine radical cation

Novel truxene-based dipyrromethanes (DPMs): synthesis, spectroscopic characterization and photophysical properties

• Shakeel Alvi and
• Rashid Ali

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2163–2170, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.186

• ), organogels, molecular wires, self-assembly and so forth [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. Moreover, nowadays these invaluable compounds have also received great attention of supramolecular chemists, and finds applications in sensing, catalysis, donor–acceptor systems, energy transfer and

Multicomponent syntheses of pyrazoles via (3 + 2)-cyclocondensation and (3 + 2)-cycloaddition key steps

• Ignaz Betcke,
• Alissa C. Götzinger,
• Maryna M. Kornet and
• Thomas J. J. Müller

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2024–2077, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.178

• coordination of the magnesium ions and subsequent hydrazine inactivation. The diversity-oriented nature of this consecutive four-component synthesis was used to synthesize 17 different donor/acceptor-substituted pyrazoles 108 in moderate to good yields (Scheme 39) [136]. The synthesis of bispyrazoles was also

Diastereoselective synthesis of highly substituted cyclohexanones and tetrahydrochromene-4-ones via conjugate addition of curcumins to arylidenemalonates

• Deepa Nair,
• Abhishek Tiwari,
• Banamali Laha and
• Irishi N. N. Namboothiri

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 2016–2023, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.177

• , curcumin showcases its Michael donor–acceptor ability in different ways, such as simple Michael addition, [4 + 2] annulation, Michael addition followed by cyclization or one-pot multicomponent reactions (MCR), etc. (Scheme 1) [25]. In 2011, our group reported the reactivity of curcumin as a Michael donor

• ]. Other groups have also investigated the Michael donor–acceptor reactivity of curcumins [25]. For instance, a quinine-thiourea catalyzed Michael addition of curcumins to nitroalkenes reported by Ye et al. stopped at the single Michael addition stage [35]. In the subsequent year, Yan et al. demonstrated a

• reported in due course. Biologically active derivatives of cyclohexanones. X-ray structure of 4a (CCDC 2351387). Origin of stereoselectivity in the double Michael addition. The Michael donor–acceptor reactivity of curcumin: previous vs present work. A plausible reaction mechanism. Scale-up reaction

Supramolecular assemblies of amphiphilic donor–acceptor Stenhouse adducts as macroscopic soft scaffolds

• Ka-Lung Hung,
• Leong-Hung Cheung,
• Yikun Ren,
• Ming-Hin Chau,
• Yan-Yi Lam,
• Takashi Kajitani and
• Franco King-Chi Leung

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1590–1603, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.142

• UV light, we have previously reported a design of amphiphilic donor–acceptor Stenhouse adducts (DASAs) controlled by white light. Herein, we present a series of DASA amphiphiles (DAs) with minor structural modifications on the alkyl linker chain length connecting the DASA motif with the hydrophilic

• fabrication of visible-light-controlled macroscopic scaffolds, offering the next generation of biomedical materials with visible-light-controlled microenvironments and future soft-robotic systems. Keywords: donor–acceptor Stenhouse adduct; photoresponsive molecular amphiphile; supramolecular transformation

• , stiff-stilbene [26], azobenzene [27][28], molecular motors [19][29][30], spiropyran [31][32][33], indigo [34][35], and donor–acceptor Stenhouse adducts (DASAs) [36][37], have been used in supramolecular systems for photoswitchable smart electronic, optoelectronic, and biomedical materials [30][38][39

Generation of alkyl and acyl radicals by visible-light photoredox catalysis: direct activation of C–O bonds in organic transformations

• Mithu Roy,
• Bitan Sardar,
• Itu Mallick and
• Dipankar Srimani

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1348–1375, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.119

• electron density, which facilitates a π–π interactions with the aryl iodide system and ultimately results in the production of an electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complex 21. Photoexcitation of this EDA complex furnishes an aryl iodide radical anion and a radical cation complex 22. Then, the elimination of

Competing electrophilic substitution and oxidative polymerization of arylamines with selenium dioxide

• Vishnu Selladurai and
• Selvakumar Karuthapandi

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1221–1235, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.105

• arylamine reactivity. The NBO analysis was carried out using the same basis set, B3LYP/6-31G(d,p). The natural charge (q) of the nitrogen atom, occupancy of the nitrogen lone pair orbital, second-order perturbation energy (E) for intramolecular donor–acceptor interactions, and the donation of electron

Two-fold addition reaction of silylene to C₆₀: structural and electronic properties of a bis-adduct

• Masahiro Kako,
• Masato Kai,
• Masanori Yasui,
• Michio Yamada,
• Yutaka Maeda and
• Takeshi Akasaka

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1179–1188, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.100

• the transition state was ascribed to the donor–acceptor interactions between the HOMO of the silylene and the LUMO of ethylene, and vice versa [42]. For 2a, the LUMO is largely distributed at the e' bonds, followed by the cis-2 and trans-3 bonds (Figure 8). These results suggest that the formation of

Structure–property relationships in dicyanopyrazinoquinoxalines and their hydrogen-bonding-capable dihydropyrazinoquinoxalinedione derivatives

• Tural N. Akhmedov,
• Ajeet Kumar,
• Daken J. Starkenburg,
• Kyle J. Chesney,
• Khalil A. Abboud,
• Novruz G. Akhmedov,
• Jiangeng Xue and
• Ronald K. Castellano

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 1037–1052, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.92

• 3a in comparison to other compounds within the DCPQ family of compounds. As shown in Figure 5 and Table 1, the donor–acceptor character of the H-bonding counterparts is considerably muted and the HOMO and LUMO in these cases are both relatively delocalized. The HOMO energies of DPQD 1b–7b are also

Palladium-catalyzed three-component radical-polar crossover carboamination of 1,3-dienes or allenes with diazo esters and amines

• Geng-Xin Liu,
• Xiao-Ting Jie,
• Ge-Jun Niu,
• Li-Sheng Yang,
• Xing-Lin Li,
• Jian Luo and
• Wen-Hao Hu

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 661–671, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.59

• yields (4v–ab, 51–77%). α-Diazo esters with benzyl, cyclobutanemethyl, and adamantyl groups could be transformed smoothly to the products 4v, 4w, and 4x in 64%, 69% and 77% yields, respectively. Gratifyingly, except for acceptor-substituted diazo esters, donor/acceptor-substituted diazo compounds were

• . 1,2-Adducts could be produced fluently with diazo substrates containing alkyl-substituted esters. Benzyl- (6r, 57%), cyclobutanemethyl- (6s, 81%), methoxyethyl- (6t, 66%), and adamantyl- (6u, 82%) substituted diazo esters underwent this photoinitiated radical reaction well. The donor/acceptor

Mechanisms for radical reactions initiating from N-hydroxyphthalimide esters

• Carlos R. Azpilcueta-Nicolas and
• Jean-Philip Lumb

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 346–378, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.35

• oxidation of 35 to 36, the photocatalyst is regenerated and product 37 is formed through intramolecular nucleophilic cyclization facilitated by the phosphate base. Importantly, the activation of NHPI esters through PCET may also play a role in transformations mediated by the cyanoarene-based donor–acceptor

• in the visible region. These species are referred to in the literature as electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complexes [58][59] and undergo photoexcitation in the absence of an exogenous photoredox catalyst. When excited by visible light, an intra-complex SET from the donor substrate D to the NHPI ester

Perspectives on push–pull chromophores derived from click-type [2 + 2] cycloaddition–retroelectrocyclization reactions of electron-rich alkynes and electron-deficient alkenes

• Michio Yamada

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 125–154, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.13

• physicochemical properties of the family of these compounds that have been investigated is provided to clarify their potential for future applications. Keywords: click chemistry; donor–acceptor conjugate; intramolecular charge transfer; photoluminescence; photoinduced electron transfer; Introduction Push–pull

• TCBD, donor–acceptor conjugated systems have been systematically developed by coupling the TCBD motif with an electron donor, resulting in the experimental observation of photoinduced electron- and energy-transfer events. In 2014, comprehensive investigations on the photophysical properties of

• guaranteeing long-lived CS states. Guldi et al. synthesized 16 distinct donor–acceptor conjugated molecules, denoted as 89–104 (Figure 11). These molecules comprised ZnP as an electron donor and push–pull chromophores with varying reduction potentials as electron acceptors interconnected by various rigid

Visible-light-induced radical cascade cyclization: a catalyst-free synthetic approach to trifluoromethylated heterocycles

• Chuan Yang,
• Wei Shi,
• Jian Tian,
• Lin Guo,
• Yating Zhao and
• Wujiong Xia

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 118–124, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.12

• NMR (Figure S3 in Supporting Information File 1) [30] and high-resolution mass spectrometry. You and co-workers proposed a reaction pathway involving the combination of the indole substrate and Umemoto’s reagent to form an electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complex [31]. We excluded the possibility of an

Multi-redox indenofluorene chromophores incorporating dithiafulvene donor and ene/enediyne acceptor units

• Christina Schøttler,
• Kasper Lund-Rasmussen,
• Line Broløs,
• Philip Vinterberg,
• Ema Bazikova,
• Viktor B. R. Pedersen and
• Mogens Brøndsted Nielsen

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2024, 20, 59–73, doi:10.3762/bjoc.20.8

• Sciences, Beijing, China 10.3762/bjoc.20.8 Abstract Large donor–acceptor scaffolds derived from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) with tunable HOMO and LUMO energies are important for several applications, such as organic photovoltaics. Here, we present a large selection of PAHs based on central

• a subsequent Glaser–Hay coupling reaction, a RA acceptor unit was introduced to provide a DTF-IF-RA donor–acceptor scaffold with a low-energy charge-transfer absorption and multi-redox behavior. Keywords: alkynes; chromophores; fused-ring systems; heterocycles; redox chemistry; Introduction

• pyrrole unit to one of the dithiole rings of an IF-TTF, allowing for dimerization of extended TTFs via the nitrogen atom by different linkers [14]. Donor–acceptor chromophores can be obtained by replacing one of the dithiafulvene (DTF) rings of the IF-TTF by an electron acceptor. Cyclic and acyclic

Thienothiophene-based organic light-emitting diode: synthesis, photophysical properties and application

• Recep Isci and
• Turan Ozturk

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1849–1857, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.137

• for organic electronic applications [12][35]. Dimesitylboron (DMB), with its unoccupied p-orbital, is an electron-acceptor organoboron compound used in several donor–acceptor systems to provide the system with pull–push interaction [36][37]. In this work, we have designed and synthesized a D–π–A model

• characteristic of DMB-TT-TPA (8). Additionally, OLED performances were significantly increased compared to the previous study [23]. In terms of the TT chemistry, the device results reached remarkable values for donor–π–acceptor-type solution processable emitters within the donor–acceptor family [39][40][41][42

Recent advancements in iodide/phosphine-mediated photoredox radical reactions

• Tinglan Liu,
• Yu Zhou,
• Junhong Tang and
• Chengming Wang

Beilstein J. Org. Chem. 2023, 19, 1785–1803, doi:10.3762/bjoc.19.131

• smoothly delivered an electron donor–acceptor (EDA) complex II via coulombic interactions. Upon 456 nm blue LED light irradiation, the EDA complex II underwent a single electron transfer (SET) process, followed by subsequent decarboxylation to produce the alkyl radical intermediate A, accompanied by

• amount of ammonium iodide under irradiation in the absence of triphenylphosphine (Scheme 12). The generation of alkyl radicals was attributed to the photoactivation of a transient electron donor–acceptor complex formed between iodide and N-(acyloxy)phthalimide, in line with earlier findings. These