Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Bearing Polyethynyl Bridges: Synthesis, Photophysical Properties, and their Applications

Abstract Polyacetylene bridged π‐conjugated polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) have found wide applications in the fabrication of organic field‐effect transistors (OFETs), organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs), solar cells, organic photovoltaic devices (OPV), liquid crystal displays and sensors. The ease with which semiconducting and/or emissive behaviour of polyacetylene bridged PAHs could be modulated by tailored functionalities via state‐of‐art powerful synthetic tools along with their low production cost and mechanical flexibility makes them one among the favourites for versatile optoelectronic and sensing applications. The current review sheds light on the applicability of Sonogashira coupling in the synthesis of PAHs with alkynyl bridges with particular emphasis on their photophysical properties. The review further discusses the utility of alkynyl bridged PAHs from the point of view of their applications in optoelectronic devices and in sensing nitroaromatics. The rich synthetic Sonogashira coupling that is available at one‘s disposal along with the promising photophysical properties demonstrated by alkynyl bridged PAHs offers great promise in design of novel π‐conjugated molecules that are capable of exhibiting exciting optoelectronic and sensing applications.