Research activities in the field of imidazole-derived push-pull systems featuring intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) are reviewed. Design, synthetic pathways, linear and nonlinear optical properties, electrochemistry, structure-property relationships, and the prospective application of such D-π-A organic materials are described. This review focuses on Y-shaped imidazoles, bi- and diimidazoles, benzimidazoles, bis(benzimidazoles), imidazole-4,5-dicarbonitriles, and imidazole-derived chromophores chemically bound to a polymer chain.

• Keywords
• charge transfer, chromophore, conjugation, donor–acceptor system, imidazole,
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH