Synthesis and characterization of thieno[3,4-b]pyrazine-based terthienyls: tunable precursors for low band gap conjugated materials.

Synthetic methods have been developed for the preparation of new 2,3-dihalo- and 2,3-ditriflato-5,7-bis(2-thienyl)thieno[3,4-b]pyrazines. From these reactive intermediates, a variety of new 2,3-difunctionalized 5,7-bis(2-thienyl)thieno[3,4-b]pyrazines have been produced as precursors to conjugated materials. Structural, electronic, and optical characterization of these new analogues illustrate the extent to which the electronic nature of the functional groups can be used to tune the electronic properties of these thieno[3,4-b]pyrazine-based terthienyl units.