Research Project: Möbius Aromatics
Möbius topology has been inspiring art, music, literature, science and technology for centuries. It entered the field of chemistry in 1964 when theoretical chemist E. Heilbronner predicted that Möbius annulenes would violate the Hückel rule. They would be aromatic with 4n electrons. Many attempts by numerous chemists notwithstanding, the first Möbius annulene could not be obtained before our successful synthesis in 2003. Heilbronner's theoretical predictions were experimentally confirmed.
Key Publications:
Synthesis of a Moebius aromatic hydrocarbon
D. Ajami, O. Oeckler, A. Simon, R. Herges, Nature 2003, 426, 819-821.
DOI
Cyclic tris-[5]helicenes with single and triple twisted Möbius topologies and Mobius aromaticity
G. Naulet, L. Sturm, A. Robert, P. Dechambenoit, F. Roehricht, R. Herges, H. Bock, F. Durola, Chem. Sci. 2018, 9, 8930-8936.
DOI
Design and synthesis of the first triply twisted Mobius annulene
G. R. Schaller, F. Topic, K. Rissanen, Y. Okamoto, J. Shen, R. Herges, Nature Chem. 2014, 6, 608-613.
DOI
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