Advances and opportunities in Group 15 porphyrin chemistry

The chemistry of Group 15 porphyrins has been established relatively well among the main-group porphyrins. Thus far phosphorus(iii), phosphorus(v), arsenic(iii), arsenic(v), antimony(iii), antimony(v), and bismuth(iii) porphyrins have been reported. Their unique axial-bonding ability, rich redox, and optical properties offer an advantage over other main-group or transition metal porphyrins. They could be excellent candidates for a variety of applications such as solar energy harvesting, molecular electronics, molecular catalysis, and biomedical applications. Despite these unique properties, the Group 15 porphyrins are not exploited at their fullest capacity. Recently, there has been some interest, where the richness of Group 15 porphyrin chemistry was explored for some of the above applications. In this context, this article summarizes recent advances in Group 15 porphyrin chemistry and attempts to unravel the tremendous opportunities of these remarkable porphyrins.