Electron Acceptors of the Fluorene Series. 7.1 2,7-Dicyano-4,5-dinitro-9-X-fluorenes: Synthesis, Cyclic Voltammetry, Charge Transfer Complexation with N-Propylcarbazole in Solution, and X-ray Crystal Structures of Two Tetrathiafulvalene Complexes

The synthesis and physical properties of a series of novel fluorene π-electron acceptors ( 7 − 9 ) are described. Cyclic voltammograms of 7 and 8 exhibit three separate reversible (or quasi-reversible) one-electron redox waves, characteristic of strong electron acceptors. Spectroelectrochemical experiments show the appearance in the long-wavelength visible region of absorption bands at appropriate potentials which were attributed to the transformations A → A • - and A • - → A 2 - . Charge-transfer complexation with N -propylcarbazole in dioxane shows the formation of 1:1 complexes with parameters characteristic for other fluorene acceptors. The single-crystal X-ray structures of 1:1 charge-transfer complexes of tetrathiafulvalene with the electron acceptor 8 and with the strongest fluorene acceptor 1f both show ··A···D···A···D·· stacking in the crystal.