Aromaticity and Antiaromaticity: Refining Concepts and Expanding Perspectives
A special issue of Chemistry (ISSN 2624-8549). This special issue belongs to the section "Theoretical and Computational Chemistry".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 December 2025 | Viewed by 6489
Special Issue Editors
Interests: theoretical chemistry; aromaticity; boron clusters; potential energy surface; reaction mechanisms
Interests: electron delocalization; aromaticity; reaction mechanisms; carbon nanostructures; excited states
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
We are pleased to announce a Special Issue of Chemistry on aromaticity, dedicated to exploring and critically assessing this foundational yet evolving concept in chemistry.
Aromaticity remains one of the most widely used but also debated “unicorns” in the chemical sciences (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jcc.20543). While it provides an essential framework for understanding benzene-like systems, its definition remains subject to diverse interpretations across theoretical and experimental disciplines. This Special Issue will bring together cutting-edge research and conceptual discussions to refine our understanding of aromaticity and antiaromaticity.
Scope and Topics:
This Special Issue will share critical reflections, new theoretical insights, and experimental findings that contribute to shaping the definition and applications of (anti)aromaticity. To ensure a broad and meaningful discussion, we encourage authors to include a dedicated section in their manuscripts presenting their views on the definitions of aromaticity and antiaromaticity.
Submissions may include the following:
- Conceptual and theoretical (re)analysis and perspectives on aromaticity and antiaromaticity;
- New experimental and computational approaches to assessing (anti)aromaticity;
- Applications of (anti)aromatic systems in materials science, catalysis, and beyond;
- Studies on delocalization, electronic effects, and bonding models;
- Historical and future perspectives on defining and standardizing aromaticity.
In addition to original research articles, we particularly welcome short reviews and perspective articles that critically examine the current state of the field and provide arguments for potential refinements to the IUPAC definitions of aromaticity and antiaromaticity.
This Special Issue will serve as a platform to extend the discussions initiated at Aromaticity 2025. We invite both conference participants and the broader scientific community to contribute.
We look forward to receiving your contributions and enjoying a thought-provoking discussion on the future of aromaticity.
Please contact the Guest Editors or the journal’s editorial team with any enquiries.
Prof. Dr. Gabriel Merino
Prof. Dr. Miquel Solà
Prof. Dr. Henrik Ottosson
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Chemistry is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- aromaticity
- delocalization
- symmetry
- topology
- magnetism
- electronic structure
- excited states
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