Intramolecular Noncovalent Interaction‐Driven <i>Syn</i> ‐/ <i>Anti</i> ‐Conformational Regulation in Nonfused‐Ring Electron Acceptors
Molecular conformation is a critical structural attribute of organic molecules and polymers in addition to their constitution and configuration, thereby forming the foundation for understanding macroscopic material properties and device functionality. For nonfused-ring electron acceptors (NFREAs) featuring multiple σ-bonds with high rotational degrees of freedom, significant challenges remain in precisely regulating molecular conformation, particularly in modulating the syn- and anti-conformation preferences. Here, we demonstrate precise engineering of NFREAs through conformation-directed molecular design, achieving a syn-to-anti-conformational transition via utilizing intramolecular noncovalent S···F interactions. This conformational regulation strategy enables a systematic investigation of how syn-/anti-conformational preferences influence molecular planarity and rigidity, self-assembly behavior, charge transport properties, and device performance. Our results reveal that the anti-conformation endows anti-TT-F with enhanced crystallinity, reduced reorganization energy, and improved charge carrier mobility compared to its syn-conformational counterpart. Consequently, binary and ternary devices based on anti-TT-F achieve remarkable power conversion efficiencies of 15.08% and 19.88%, respectively. This conformational engineering strategy unveils a previously overlooked dimension in molecular design, providing fundamental guidelines for developing high-performance organic solar cells through the rational manipulation of conformational landscapes.
Authors
- Yunhao Cai (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-8822-655X)
- Qian Peng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3261-3330)
- Na Yu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8131-4885)
- Zheng Tang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0036-2362)
- Jiawei Qiao
- Sixuan Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3377-8033)
- Ziyang Han
- Xiaotao Hao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0197-6545)
- Xin Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4611-0286)
- Feng Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2669-5448)
- Hui Huang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6102-2815)
- Siying Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6526-2181)
- Xiaobin Gu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2861-2776)
- Yuqi Hou (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9719-4416)
- Jikai Lv (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-1240-4532)
- Rui Zeng
Institutions
- Tianjin University of Technology (CN)
- Shandong University (CN)
- Tianjin University (CN)
- Donghua University (CN)
- Shanghai Jiao Tong University (CN)
- Shandong Management University (CN)
- State Key Laboratory of Chemical Engineering (CN)
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Angewandte Chemie International Edition
- Published
- 2025-10-04
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202513603
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- Organic Electronics and Photovoltaics
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.19