Unsymmetrically functionalized phthalocyanines as versatile platforms for the preparation of molecular materials

Abstract

The application of modern synthetic methods to the unsymmetrical functionalization of phthalocyanines has allowed in the last years the preparation of a plethora of phthalocyanine-based molecules, some of which have found remarkable application in different fields of materials science such as nonlinear optics and photovoltaics. In particular, transition metal (especially, palladium) mediated reactions have been crucial tools in the synthesis of quite sophisticated derivatives containing π-conjugated units. The main problem that synthetic chemists working in this field had to overcome was the strong tendency of these macrocycles toward aggregation, which can preclude the preparation of some unsymmetrically substituted Pcs. This micro-review gives a brief overview of the most relevant synthetic methods developed in Spain and Portugal that have been applied to the efficient preparation of Pc-based systems for different applications.