Strategies in organic synthesis for condensed arenes, coronene, and graphene.

Graphene-type structures are without doubt one of the most exciting carbon-based materials known. Although graphene is mostly prepared by physical methods (CVD, exfoliation), organic synthesis represents a powerful alternative to access graphene-type structures in a selective and reproducible manner. Although graphene has been hyped as a "new" material, the resemblance to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) offers a long history in organic chemistry on which all new endeavors are built. In this review we demonstrate the state-of-the-art of organic synthetic strategies for the preparation of graphene-type structures on selected examples.