2,3‐Di‐n‐undecylanthracene and 2,3‐di‐n‐decyloxyanthracene (DDOA) – on the Connecting Link Between the Aromatic Substrate and the Aliphatic Chain in Self‐Assembling Systems

In contrast to its bis(oxa) analog 1 (DDOA), the hydrocarbon 11 was not found to form organogels with linear alcohols, alkanes, toluene, acetonitrile and other solvents. Whereas the photoreactivity of 1 did not follow the usual behaviour of anthracene derivatives, compound 11, irradiated in cyclohexane, produced the two expected [4+4]cycloadducts 12 and 13 (anti and syn photodimers, respectively). These facts point to the role of the connecting link between the rigid core and the flexible chain for some self-assembled systems. ((C) Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2009)