Thionated Perylene Diimide–Phenothiazine Dyad: Synthesis, Structure, and Electrochemical Studies

Perylene diimides (PDIs) are promising candidates for n-type semiconductor materials and, thus, for use in organic electronics. Thionation of the imide moiety provides an efficient strategy to control the donor-acceptor gap of these types of compounds, although the degree and selectivity of thionation can be hard to achieve. Through the design of a sterically encumbered PDI-phenothiazine dyad, a previously unattained geminal thionation pattern has been realized, providing the first example of a perylene-monoimide-monothioimide. The electrochemical and solid-state structural properties of this uniquely thionated dyad are reported and compared to those of the nonthionated parent molecule. It is found that thionation enhances the electron affinity of the PDI core, affecting electrochemical and spectroelectochemcial behavior of the dyad without significantly affecting the solid-state packing of the molecules.