Recent progress in the usage of tetrabromo-substituted naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydride as a building block to construct organic semiconductors and their applications

Tetrabromo-substituted naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydrides (TBNDA) have attracted considerable attention in constructing organic semiconductors (OSCs) for diverse applications in the past decade. A series of synthetic strategies have been developed to modify the parent structure, including longitudinal imidization and lateral core-functionalization. The as-obtained small molecular and polymeric materials present expanded conjugated systems with unique characteristics of near-infrared absorption, outstanding p-acidity, and low-lying LUMO levels. In this review, recent progress in the synthetic methods of the TBNDI derivatives and their applications in organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), gas sensors, fluoride sensors, and supramolecular self-assembly are summarized. The remaining opportunities and challenges are elaborated to give specific guidance on preparing abundant TBNDA derivatives and their anticipated applications.