Synthesis and properties of silole-containing α- and π-conjugated compounds

Reported herein are the developments and applications of new silole-containing sigma- and pi-electronic systems. A series of 2,5- and 1,1-difunctionalized, siloles have been prepared based on the intramolecular reductive cyclization of diethynylsilanes. Starting from these functionalized silo!es, oligo (2,5-silole)s and oligo(1,1-silole)s have been synthesized as model compounds for poly(2,5-silole)s and poly(1,1-silole)s, respectively, which are still veiled target molecules in this field: Some silole-based pi-conjugated cooligomers and copolymers with thiophene, pyrrole, and acetylene pi-electronic systems have been prepared and their photophysical properties have been determined. Application of silole pi-electronic systems to organic electroluminescent (EL) devices has also been examined.