Luminescence Switching of a Cyclometalated Iridium(III) Complex through a Redox-active Tetrathiafulvalene-based Ligand

Biomimetic Exploration and Reflection on Switchable Coordination and Narrow-Band Electrofluorochromic Devices

Electrofluorochromic (EFC) materials and devices with controllable fluorescence properties show great application potential in advanced anticounterfeiting, information storage and display. However, the low color purity caused by the broad emission spectra and underperforming switching time of the existing EFC materials limit their application. Through biomimetic exploration and the study of reversible electrochemical responsive coordination reactions, boron-nitrogen embedded polyaromatics (B,N-PAHs) with narrow-band emission and high color purity have been successfully integrated into EFC systems, which also help to better understand the role of boron in biological activity. The EFC device achieve good performance containing quenching efficiency greater than 90% within short switching time (ton: 0.6 s, toff: 2.4 s), and nearly no performance change after 200 cycles test. Three primary color (red, green, and blue) EFC devices are successfully prepared. In addition, new phenomena are obtained and discussed in this biomimetic exploration of related boron reactions. The success and harvest of this exploration are expected to provide new ideas for optimizing properties and broadening applications of EFC materials. Moreover, it may provide ideas and reference significance for further exploring and understanding the function of boron compounds in biological systems.

Spiro rhodamine-coumarin compact electron donor-acceptor dyads: synthesis and spin-orbit charge transfer intersystem crossing

We prepared spiro rhodamine (RB)-coumarin (Cou) compact electron donor-acceptor dyads (RB-Cou-CF₃ and RB-Cou-CN), to study the charge transfer (CT) and spin-orbit CT intersystem crossing (SOCT-ISC). The π-conjugation planes of the rhodamine and coumarin units in both dyads are in nearly orthogonal geometry (dihedral angle: 86.3°). CT state emission was observed for RB-Cou-CF₃ (at 550 nm) and RB-Cou-CN (at 595 nm). Although the fluorescence of the pristine coumarin units (fluorescence quantum yields Φ_F = 59%) was quenched in the dyads (Φ_F = 0.5 ~ 1.1% in n-hexane), the triplet state quantum yields of the dyads are also low (singlet oxygen quantum yield, Φ_Δ = 2.3-7.5% in n-hexane). Nanosecond transient absorption spectra show that the ³Cou* state was formed, which shows a triplet state lifetime of 11-15.6 μs. The proposed photophysical path for the dyads is as follows: RB-¹Cou* → RB^+•-Cou^-• → RB-³Cou*. The low SOCT-ISC yield is attributed to the slightly lower charge-transfer state energy (1.94 eV in toluene) as compared to the ³Cou* state energy (2.23 eV) and the shallow potential energy curve (PEC) at energy minima of the dyads. This work indicates that orthogonal conformation of donor-acceptor units is inadequate for achieving efficient SOCT-ISC. These results are useful for studying charge separation and intersystem crossing of electron donor/acceptor dyads.

Periphery Modification of Tetrathiafulvalenes: Recent Development and Applications

Tetrathiafulvalene (TTF) and its analogs are fascinating molecules in materials science based on their excellent electron-donating abilities. This personal account describes recent advances in the synthesis of TTF analogs for functional materials via the palladium-catalyzed modification of peripheries of TTF analogs. We first consider three types of molecules: fluorophore-TTF hybrid molecules, multi-redox systems, and an organic ligand for metal-organic frameworks. These molecules were successfully synthesized via Stille coupling or palladium-catalyzed direct C-H arylation and their structural, electrochemical, and optical properties were clarified. Subsequently, phosphorus-substituted TTF analogs were successfully synthesized for future applications of redox-active phosphine ligands for metal catalysts. The development of these molecules can significantly affect the advancement of chemical science.

Multistimuli responsive micelles formed by a tetrathiafulvalene-functionalized amphiphile

An electroactive tetrathiafulvalene (TTF)-functionalized amphiphile 1 was designed and synthesized to investigate its self-assembling behavior in water. Dynamic light scattering (DLS), (1)H NMR, fluorescence spectrum, and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) studies revealed that amphiphile 1 can form micelle-like aggregates via direct dissolution into water, and the micellar architectures could be disrupted either by addition of chemical oxidant Fe(ClO(4))(3) or by complexation with electron-deficient cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene) tetracation cyclophane (CBPQT(4+)) to release encapsulated hydrophobic dye Nile Red from the interior of micelles.

d-f heterobimetallic association between ytterbium and ruthenium carbon-rich complexes: redox commutation of near-IR luminescence

We describe how the association between an ytterbium ion and a ruthenium carbon-rich complex enables the first switching of the near-IR Yb(III) luminescence by taking advantage of the redox commutation of the carbon-rich antenna.

3-D coordination polymers based on the tetrathiafulvalenetetracarboxylate (TTF-TC) derivative: synthesis, characterization, and oxidation issues

The reactivity of the redox-active tetracarboxylic acid derived from the tetrathiafulvalene (TTF-TC)H(4) with alkaline cations (K, Rb, Cs) is reported. The exploration of various experimental parameters (temperature, pH) led to the formation of four crystalline three-dimensional coordination polymers formulated M(2)(TTF-TC)H(2) (M = K, Rb, Cs), denoted MIL-132(K), MIL-133(isostructural K, Rb), and MIL-134(Cs). Thermogravimetric analysis and thermodiffraction show that all of the solids are thermally stable up to 150-200 degrees C in the air. In order to exploit the possibility of oxidation of the organic linker in TTF-based compounds, they were employed as positive electrodes in a classical lithium cell. A highly reversible cyclability was achieved at high current density (10 C) with a reasonable performance (approximately 50 mAh g(-1)). Finally, combined electro-(sub)hydrothermal synthesis was used to prepare a fifth 3-D coordination polymer formulated K(TTF-TC)H(2) (denoted MIL-135(K)), this time not based on the neutral TTF-TC linker but its radical, oxidized form TTF-TC(+*). This solid is less thermally stable than its neutral counterparts but exhibits a semiconducting behavior, with a conductivity at room temperature of about 1 mS cm(-1).