Torsional Barriers to Rotation and Planarization in Heterocyclic Oligomers of Value in Organic Electronics
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 21, 2026

Excitonic Hamiltonians for Calculating Optical Absorption Spectra and Optoelectronic Properties of Molecular Aggregates and Solids
Published on: May 27, 2020
Janice B Lin1, Yu Jin1, Steven A Lopez1
1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California , Los Angeles, California 90095, United States.
Abstract:
In order to understand the conformational behavior of organic components in organic electronic devices, we have computed the torsional potentials for a library of thiophene-based heterodimers. The accuracy and efficiencies of computational methods for these organic materials were benchmarked for 11 common density functionals with three Pople basis sets against a Focal Point Analysis (FPA) on a model oligothiophene 2,5-bis(3-tetradecylthiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]-thiophene (BTTT) system. This study establishes a set of general trends in regards to conformational preferences, as well as planarization and rotational barriers for a library comprised of common fragments found in organic materials. These gas phase structures are compared to experimental crystal structures to determine the effect of crystal packing on geometry. Finally, we analyze the structure of hole-transporting material DERDTS-TBDT and design a new oligomer likely to be planar in the solid state.
More Related Videos
08:43Effect of Bending on the Electrical Characteristics of Flexible Organic Single Crystal-based Field-effect Transistors
Published on: November 7, 2016
09:22Self-assembling Morphologies Obtained from Helical Polycarbodiimide Copolymers and Their Triazole Derivatives
Published on: February 7, 2017
Related Concept Videos
Conformations of Cyclohexane
The chair form is the most stable and derives its name from its resemblance to the “easy chair.” In the chair conformation, two carbon atoms are arranged out-of-plane — one above and one below, minimizing the torsional strain. In the chair form, the bond angle is very close to the ideal...
Thermal Electrocyclic Reactions: Stereochemistry
Selection Rules: Thermal Activation
Conjugated systems containing an even number of π-electron pairs undergo a conrotatory ring closure. For example, thermal electrocyclization of (2E,4E)-2,4-hexadiene, a conjugated diene containing two π-electron pairs, gives trans-3,4-dimethylcyclobutene.
Thermal and Photochemical Electrocyclic Reactions: Overview
Five-Membered Heterocyclic Aromatic Compounds: Overview
Chair Conformation of Cyclohexane
The hydrogen atoms linked to carbons are arranged in two different axial and equatorial orientations to achieve this...
Conformations of Cycloalkanes