Upper Excited State Photophysics of Malachite Green in Solution and Films

Toward efficient photochemistry from upper excited electronic states: Detection of long S2 lifetime of perylene

A long 0.9 ps lifetime of the upper excited singlet state in perylene is resolved by femtosecond pump-probe measurements under ultraviolet (4.96 eV) excitation and further validated by theoretical simulations of transient absorption kinetics. This finding prompts exploration and development of novel perylene-based materials for upper excited state photochemistry applications.

Switching Pathways of Triplet State Formation by Twisted Intramolecular Charge Transfer

With the aim of constructing efficient photoelectric organic materials, a pyrido[3,2-g]quinoline derivative named LA17b has been synthesized, and its photodynamic relaxation processes in solvents and films were studied by time-resolved fluorescence and femtosecond transient absorption techniques. The steady-state fluorescence spectra show pronounced red-shift with the increase of the solvent polarity as well as in binary solvent hexane/ethanol by increasing ethanol concentration. However, the strong red-shift does not lead to quenching of the fluorescence. This is explained in terms of a twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) state. The TICT state of LA17b in ethanol is highly emissive with a long fluorescence lifetime: 1.1 ns. TICT state was shown to play an important role in enhancement of intersystem crossing rate. TD-DFT calculations confirm the pathways of relaxation of locally excited state via TICT and triplet states. In films, the photodynamic properties are similar to that of LA17b in hexane and the TICT state vanishes due to the rigid environment. The obtained optical properties of this molecule suggest that it can be a promising candidate for various optoelectronic applications.

Ultrafast Excited State Relaxation Dynamics of New Fuchsine- a Triphenylmethane Derivative Dye

An all-inclusive investigation of the ultrafast excited state relaxation dynamics of a triphenylmethane derivative molecule, New Fuchsine (NF), using a combined approach of density functional theory (DFT), femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy (fs-TAS), and photoluminescence spectroscopy is presented in this work. The DFT calculations confirmed the formation of twisted molecular structure in the excited state of NF in ethanol solution with bond rotation of ≈ 86⁰ . TAS measurements of NF solution exhibited ultrafast ground state-recovery pathway via a conical intersection confirming an ultrafast structural reorientation. On the contrary, TAS measurements of NF thin-film exhibited a longer excited-state lifetime suggesting a hindered molecular twisted state formed as an intermediate step. Photophysical kinetic models are proposed to globally fit the fs-TAS data establishing the twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) state mediated ground state recovery for NF in solution and thin film, respectively. Temperature-dependent photoluminescence study of NF film provided a clear insight into the effect of rotational motion of phenyl rings in NF molecules over the TICT mediated emission.

Mechanochemical synthesis of MAPbBr3/carbon sphere composites for boosting carrier-involved superoxide species

Lead halide perovskites MAPbX₃ (MA = CH₃NH₃ or Cs; X = I, Br, Cl) are well considered to be potential candidates for photocatalytic reaction due to its excellent photoelectrical properties, but they still suffer from the low charge separation efficiency and slow catalytic reaction dynamics. To tackle the drawbacks, herein, MAPbBr₃/carbon sphere (CS) composite photocatalysts using glucose as the carbon source were elaborately designed and fabricated via a dry mechanochemical grinding process. The interfacial interaction Pb-O-C chemical bonds were constructed between MAPbBr₃ and the carbon sphere surface containing organic functional groups. By optimizing the content of CSs, the enhanced photocatalytic degradation kinetic rate of Malachite Green (MG) pollutants (92% within 20 min) for MAPbBr₃/CS_x (x = 17 wt.%) is about 3.6-fold of that for pristine MAPbBr₃, which is attributed to the corporative adsorption and enhanced carrier transportation and separation of MAPbBr₃/CS_x. Furthermore, the possible degradation mechanism was proposed on basis of the electrochemical, mass spectrometry and optical characterization results. Owing to the robust interfacial interaction, effective electron extraction rate (k_et = 4.6 × 10⁷ sec^-1) from MAPbBr₃ to CS can be established, which driven oxygen activation where superoxide radicals (•O₂^-) played an important role in MG degradation. It is expected that mechanochemistry strategy may provide a new route to design efficient lead halide perovskite-carbon or metal oxide or sulfide composite photocatalysts.