Tuning Electron-Transfer Properties in 5,10,15,20-Tetra(1′-hexanoylferrocenyl)porphyrins as Prospective Systems for Quantum Cellular Automata and Platforms for Four-Bit Information Storage

Controlling Redox and Wirelike Charge-Delocalization Properties of Dinuclear Mixed-Valence Complexes with MCp*(dppe) (M = Fe, Ru) Termini Bridged by Metalloporphyrin Linkers

Four dinuclear organometallic molecular wire complexes with diethynylmetalloporphyrin linkers 1 MM' , [5,15-bis{MCp*(dppe)ethynyl}-10,20-diarylporphinato]M' (Cp* = η5-C5Me5; dppe = 1,2-bis(diphenylphosphino)ethane; M/M' = Fe/Zn (1 FeZn ), Ru/Zn (1 RuZn ), Fe/Ni (1 FeNi ), Ru/Ni (1 RuNi ); aryl = 3,5-di-tert-butylphenyl), are synthesized and characterized by NMR, CV, UV-vis-NIR, and ESI-TOF mass spectrometry techniques. Electrochemical investigations combined with electronic absorption spectroscopic studies reveal strong interactions among the electron-donating, redox-active MCp*(dppe) termini and the metalloporphyrin moieties. The monocationic species of the four complexes obtained by chemical oxidation have been characterized as mixed-valence Class II/III or Class III compounds according to the Robin-Day classification despite the long molecular dimension (>1.5 nm), as demonstrated by their intense intervalence charge transfer bands (IVCT) in the near IR region. DFT calculations indicate large spin densities on the metalloporphyrin moieties. Furthermore, the wirelike performance can be finely tuned by coordination of appropriate nitrogen donors to the axial sites of the metalloporphyrin.

Similar, Yet Different: Long-Range Metal-Metal Coupling and Electron-Transfer Processes in Metal-Free 5,10,15,20-Tetra(ruthenocenyl)porphyrin

The electronic structure, redox properties, and long-range metal-metal coupling in metal-free 5,10,15,20-tetra(ruthenocenyl)porphyrin (H₂TRcP) were probed by spectroscopic (NMR, UV-vis, magnetic circular dichroism (MCD), and atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI)), electrochemical (cyclic voltammetry, CV, and differential pulse voltammetry, DPV), spectroelectrochemical, and chemical oxidation methods, as well as theoretical (density functional theory, DFT, and time-dependent DFT, TDDFT) approaches. It was demonstrated that the spectroscopic properties of H₂TRcP are significantly different from those in H₂TFcP (metal-free 5,10,15,20-tetra(ferrocenyl)porphyrin). Ruthenocenyl fragments in H₂TRcP have higher oxidation potentials than the ferrocene groups in the H₂TFcP complex. Similar to H₂TFcP, we were able to access and spectroscopically characterize the one- and two-electron oxidized mixed-valence states in the H₂TRcP system. DFT predicts that the porphyrin π-system stabilizes the [H₂TRcP]⁺ mixed-valence cation and prevents its dimerization, which is characteristic for ruthenocenyl systems. However, formation of the mixed-valence [H₂TRcP]²⁺ is significantly less reproducible than the formation of [H₂TRcP]⁺. DFT and TDDFT calculations suggest the ruthenocenyl fragment dominance in the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy region and the presence of the low-energy MLCT (Rc → porphyrin (π*)) transitions in the visible region with energies higher than the predominantly porphyrin-centered Q-bands.

Zwitterionic Mixed-Valence Species for the Design of Neutral Clocked Molecular Quantum-Dot Cellular Automata

Mixed-valence compounds can be used for the design of molecular quantum-dot cellular automata (QCA). Here, we investigate the QCA properties of a three-dot "Y"-shaped functionalized zwitterionic neutral closo-carborane model 1-(3,5-{Cp(dHpe)Fe-C≡C-}₂(C₆H₃))-10-Cp(dHpe)Fe-C≡C-closo-1-CB₉H₈ (1) (Cp = cyclopentadienyl (η⁵-C₅H₅) and dHpe = 1,2-bis(phosphino)ethane (H₂PCH₂CH₂PH₂)) as a neutral clocked molecular half-cell. DFT results clearly demonstrate that 1 can display simultaneously the two most basic properties necessary for clocked QCA operation, i.e., bistable switching behavior and clocked control. This is possible due to the three stable states (two active and one null) of 1, corresponding to occupation of each of the three iron-ethynyl groups by the positive charge. In addition, the proximal electronic bias effects can be overcome by the zwitterionic nature of 1, which could be imposed by external counterions, rendering these effects more predictable.

Tunable luminescence and white light emission of porphyrin-zinc coordination assemblies

Bipodal ligand 5,15-bis(4-carboxyphenyl) porphyrin (H[Formula: see text]DCPP) was designed and synthesized. By adjusting the molar ratio of H[Formula: see text]DCPP, ancillary ligand 4,4-bipyridine (bpy) and zinc acetate salts, three novel coordination assemblies, namely, zero-dimensional dimeric [Zn[Formula: see text](H[Formula: see text]DCPP)[Formula: see text] ·bpy] ·4H[Formula: see text]O ·4DMF (Zn-D), two-dimensional polymeric {[Zn[Formula: see text](DCPP) ·bpy[Formula: see text] ·H[Formula: see text]O ·DMF[Formula: see text]] ·solvent}[Formula: see text] (Zn-2D), and three-dimensional polymeric [Zn[Formula: see text](DCPP) ·bpy[Formula: see text]][Formula: see text] (Zn-3D) were assembled. Due to the delicate integration of multiple chromophores in the coordination space combining bpy, DCPP and MLCT emissions together, photoluminescence (PL) of the three porphyrin-zinc coordination assemblies differ from each other and color tone is tunable from blue to orange with changes of the excitation wavelength. In particular, white light emission (WLE) can be observed by the excitation of 270 to 290 nm, representing the first examples of single component WLE compounds based on porphyrin ligands. Furthermore, temperature-dependent luminescence results in a linear [Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text] relationship in Zn-2D and Zn-3D assemblies, applicable for long wavelength red-emitting thermometers.

Molecular quantum cellular automata cell design trade-offs: latching vs. power dissipation

The use of molecules to enact quantum cellular automata (QCA) cells has been proposed as a new way for performing electronic logic operations at sub-nm dimensions. A key question that arises concerns whether chemical or physical processes are to be exploited. The use of chemical reactions allows the state of a switch element to be latched in molecular form, making the output of a cell independent of its inputs, but costs energy to do the reaction. Alternatively, if purely electronic polarization is manipulated then no internal latching occurs, but no power is dissipated provided the fields from the inputs change slowly compared to the molecular response times. How these scenarios pan out is discussed by considering calculated properties of the 1,4-diallylbutane cation, a species often used as a paradigm for molecular electronic switching. Utilized are results from different calculation approaches that depict the ion either as a charge-localized mixed-valence compound functioning as a bistable switch, or else as an extremely polarizable molecule with a delocalized electronic structure. Practical schemes for using molecular cells in QCA and other devices emerge.

Anti-migration and burning rate catalytic performances of novel ferrocene-based porphyrins and their transition-metal complexes

Novel ferrocene-based porphyrins and metal porphyrins exhibited non-migratory ability and excellent burning rate catalytic performance for composite solid propellants.

Switching of inter-valence charge transfer in stimuli-responsive bis(ferrocenyl)porphyrin

Stimuli-responsive 5,15-bis(ferrocenyl)-10,20-bis(mesityl)porphyrin (BFP) was synthesized and used to demonstrate the ON/OFF switching of inter-valence charge transfer (IVCT) between ferrocene terminals.