Hexacene is an aromatic compound consisting of six linearly-fused benzene rings. It is a blue-green, air-stable solid with low solubility.
Hexacene is one of a series of linear polycyclic molecules created by such aromatic ring fusions, a series termed acenes; the previous in the series is pentacene (with five fused rings) and the next is heptacene (with seven). It and other acenes and their derivatives have been investigated in potential applications related to organic semiconductors. Like larger acenes, hexacene is poorly soluble, but derivatives have been prepared with improved solubility, such as 6,15-Bis(tri-t-butylsilylethynyl)hexacene, which melts with decomposition at 96 °C.
