Probing the Symmetry of the Nonlinear Optic Chromophore Ru(trans-4,4‘-diethylaminostyryl-2,2‘-bipyridine)32+: Insight from Polarized Hyper-Rayleigh Scattering and Electroabsorption (Stark) Spectroscopy

Substituent and redox effects on the second-order NLO response of Ru(ii) complexes with polypyridine ligands: a theoretical study

Modifying ligands in four studied Ru(II) complexes have slight influence on their static first hyperpolarizabilities (βtot) values. However, the βtot values of complexes 1+/−–4+/− are all enhanced and the largest βtot value is observed for complex 4−.

Two-photon-absorbing ruthenium complexes enable near infrared light-driven photocatalysis

One-photon-absorbing photosensitizers are commonly used in homogeneous photocatalysis which require the absorption of ultraviolet (UV) /visible light to populate the desired excited states with adequate energy and lifetime. Nevertheless, the limited penetration depth and competing absorption by organic substrates of UV/visible light calls upon exploring the utilization of longer-wavelength irradiation, such as near-infrared light (λ_irr > 700 nm). Despite being found applications in photodynamic therapy and bioimaging, two-photon absorption (TPA), the simultaneous absorption of two photons by one molecule, has been rarely explored in homogeneous photocatalysis. Herein, we report a group of ruthenium polypyridyl complexes possessing TPA capability that can drive a variety of organic transformations upon irradiation with 740 nm light. We demonstrate that these TPA ruthenium complexes can operate in an analogous manner as one-photon-absorbing photosensitizers for both energy-transfer and photoredox reactions, as well as function in concert with a transition metal co-catalyst for metallaphotoredox C-C coupling reactions.

Nonlinear optical properties and spectroscopic characterization of Y-shaped polymer using quantum chemical approach

The present study reports nonlinear optical properties such as the first and second hyper polarizabilities (β and γ) of Y-shaped polymer (P1) and substituted polymers. The basic Y-shaped polymer (R = R₁ = H) was named as P1. Upon substitution of one OCH₃ group in ortho position of oxygen, it becomes polymer P2 (R1 = H, R = OCH3) and other OCH₃ group on another ortho becomes P3 (R1 = R = OCH3). We have also reported structural parameters, vibrational and electronic absorption spectra of polymer, and its substituted polymers. The geometrical parameters such as dipole moment, bond length, and angles are reported at B3LYP/6-311++g** level of theory. In addition, the vibrational, electronic absorption spectra and nonlinear optical (NLO) properties are also reported at the same level of theory. There is a significant change in dipole moment and in energy observed whereas symmetry, bond length, and angles are resembling Y-shaped and substituted polymer. The vibrational spectra of Y-shaped polymer (P1) having the intense peak are C-H stretching mode observed at 1258 cm^-1. These theoretical vibrational modes are well matching with available experimental determinations. The method dependent hyperpolarizabilities calculated by applying the field along the X, Y, and Z direction. This study confirms the polymer P1 and P2 showing first and second hyperpolarizability response whereas P3 do not show. The electronic absorption spectra for polymer and substituted polymers are also reported at the same level of theory using (TDDFT) approach. The wavelength of electronic transition, oscillator strength, and HOMO-LUMO gap was also reported.

Solute-solvent electronic interaction is responsible for initial charge separation in ruthenium complexes [Ru(bpy)3]2+ and [Ru(phen)3]2+

Origin of the initial charge separation in optically-excited Ruthenium(II) tris(bidentate) complexes of intrinsic D3 symmetry has remained a disputed issue for decades. Here we measure the femtosecond two-photon absorption (2PA) cross section spectra of [Ru(2,2′-bipyridine)3]2 and [Ru(1,10-phenanthroline)3]2 in a series of solvents with varying polarity and show that for vertical transitions to the lower-energy 1MLCT excited state, the permanent electric dipole moment change is nearly solvent-independent, Δμ = 5.1–6.3 D and 5.3–5.9 D, respectively. Comparison of experimental results with quantum-chemical calculations of complexes in the gas phase, in a polarizable dielectric continuum and in solute-solvent clusters containing up to 18 explicit solvent molecules indicate that the non-vanishing permanent dipole moment change in the nominally double-degenerate E-symmetry state is caused by the solute-solvent interaction twisting the two constituent dipoles out of their original opposite orientation, with average angles matching the experimental two-photon polarization ratio.

Isoindole and isomeric heterocyclic donating substituents in ruthenium(II)nitrosyl complexes with large first hyperpolarizabilities and potential two-photon absorption capabilities: a computational approach

A set of 22 ruthenium nitrosyl complexes of general formula [RuII(L)Cl2(NO)]+ is investigated computationally by the density functional theory. L is a terpyridine ligand substituted by different R isomers of formula C12H8N, either indole, isoindole, or carbazole, proposed as alternative donors to the electron-rich fluorene substituent. The computed resulting nonlinear optical (NLO) properties are found to strongly depend on the isomer. While the ruthenium complexes exhibit modest efficiencies at the second-order (two-photon absorption) level, some of the R isomers lead to complexes of enhanced capabilities in first order (b) nonlinear optics. The synthetic feasibility of these ligands is discussed.

On the Potential of Using the Al7 Superatom as an Excess Electron Acceptor To Construct Materials with Excellent Nonlinear Optical Properties

With the aid of density functional theory (DFT) calculations, we found that, when alkali metal approaches the Al7 superatom, its outermost s-value electron can be trapped by Al7 to give the superatom compound MAl7 (M = Li, Na, K) with an excess electron. Different analyses including natural bond orbital (NBO), electron localization function (ELF), and energy decomposition analysis (EDA) show that the resulting M-Al bond is strong and has a polar covalent character. The optimizations of self-assemblies (MAl7)n (n = 2, 3) have been performed to explore the stability of MAl7 in the solid state. The results reveal that only NaAl7 can keep its structural integrity as a building block upon self-assembling, while serious aggregations between Al7 clusters occur in the dimers and trimers of LiAl7 and KAl7, despite the fact that the Li-Al7 and K-Al7 bond energies are comparable to that of Na-Al7. Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics (BOMD) simulations for (NaAl7)n (n = 2, 3) indicate that these species are stable toward fragmentation at 300 K. The β0 values of (NaAl7)n (n = 1, 2, and 3) predicted at the CAM-B3LYP/6-311+G(3df) level of theory are in the range of 1.6 × 10(4)a.u. to 7.5 × 10(4) a.u.. This theoretical study implies that NaAl7 is a promising candidate for nolinear optical (NLO) materials. We provide theoretical evidence for the possibility of using the Al7 superatom as an excess electron acceptor to construct materials with excellent NLO properties. Further experimental research is invited.

Theoretical study on alkali-metal doped N3H3 complexes: an in-depth understanding of the origin of electride and alkalide and their large nonlinear optical properties

By doping the model complexant N3H3 with one or two lithium atoms, the geometrical and electronic structures as well as static electric properties of the resulting Li(N3H3), (N3H3)Li' and Li(N3H3)Li' complexes can be explored using the B3LYP, BHandHLYP, CAM-B3LYP and MP2 methods. All three complexes, especially Li(N3H3), were found to have large first hyperpolarizabilities (β 0). Meanwhile, Li(N3H3) and Li(N3H3)Li' exhibited electride and alkalide characteristics, respectively. The dependance of electric properties of alkalide Li(N3H3)Li' on the alkali atoms involved and the complexant layer number were revealed by investigating the related M(N3H3)Li' and Li(N3H3)M' (M = Na and K), and Li(N3H3) n Li' (n = 2, 3) systems. Note that the β 0 value of alkalide M(N3H3)M' increased not only with the increasing atomic number of the M'(-) anion but also with that of the M(+) cation, which differs from previously reported cases. In addition, the electric properties of the Li(N3H3)Li' alkalide were enhanced by increasing the complexant layers. However, it was found that both the complexant-complexant and the complexant-Li' interactions reduced with the addition of N3H3 layers, so no stable structures were found for larger Li(N3H3) n Li' complexes. Graphical Abstract Geometrical and electronic structures as well as static electric properties of Li(N3H3), (N3H3)Li' and Li(N3H3)Li' complexes were explored using B3LYP, BHandHLYP, CAM-B3LYP and MP2 methods.

A novel class of compounds—superalkalides: M+(en)3M3′O− (M, M′ = Li, Na, and K; en = ethylenediamine)—with excellent nonlinear optical properties and high stabilities

A novel class of inorganic salts wherein the superalkali occupies the anionic site, termed superalkalides, M⁺(en)₃M₃′O⁻ (M, M′ = Li, Na, and K) have been designed and predicted to be candidates for NLO materials.

Heptametallic, octupolar nonlinear optical chromophores with six ferrocenyl substituents

New complexes with six ferrocenyl (Fc) groups connected to Zn(II) or Cd(II) tris(2,2'-bipyridyl) cores are described. A thorough characterisation of their BPh4(-) salts includes two single-crystal X-ray structures, highly unusual for such species with multiple, extended substituents. Intense, visible d(Fe(II))→π* metal-to-ligand charge-transfer (MLCT) bands accompany the π→π* intraligand charge-transfer absorptions in the near UV region. Each complex shows a single, fully reversible Fe(III/II) wave when probed electrochemically. Molecular quadratic nonlinear optical (NLO) responses are determined by using hyper-Rayleigh scattering and Stark spectroscopy. The latter gives static first hyperpolarisabilities β0 reaching as high as approximately 10(-27)  esu and generally increasing with π-conjugation extension. Z-scan cubic NLO measurements reveal high two-photon absorption cross-sections σ2 of up to 5400 GM in one case. DFT calculations reproduce the π-conjugation dependence of β0, and TD-DFT predicts three transitions close in energy contributing to the MLCT bands. The lowest energy transition has octupolar character, whereas the other two are degenerate and dipolar in nature.

Computational Modeling of Stark Effects in Organic Dye-Sensitized TiO2 Heterointerfaces

We report a computational modeling study, based on DFT and time-dependent DFT techniques, to investigate the origin and the effect of local electric fields on the optical properties of organic dye-sensitized heterointerfaces, examining the case of the indoline D149 sensitizer on TiO2. On the one hand, we give precise information about the anchoring mode of D149 and its orientation with respect to the TiO2 surface, and on the other hand, we provide the computational framework model to interpret the Stark shifts experimentally observed by PIA spectroscopy. Our results show that the presence of oxidized dye molecules induces major spectral changes on the adjacent neutral dyes, which, along with the simulated effect of injected charge into TiO2, provide Stark shifts nicely reproducing the experimental observations.

Syntheses and properties of two-dimensional, dicationic nonlinear optical chromophores based on pyrazinyl cores

Six new dicationic 2D nonlinear optical (NLO) chromophores with pyrazinyl-pyridinium electron acceptors have been synthesized by nucleophilic substitutions of 2,6-dichloropyrazine with pyridyl derivatives. These compounds have been characterized as their PF(6)(-) salts by using various techniques including electronic absorption spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. Large red shifts in the intense, π → π* intramolecular charge-transfer (ICT) transitions on replacing -OMe with -NMe(2) substituents arise from the stronger π-electron donor ability of the latter. Each compound shows a number of redox processes which are largely irreversible. Single crystal X-ray structures have been determined for five salts, including two nitrates, all of which adopt centrosymmetric packing arrangements. Molecular first hyperpolarizabilities β have been determined by using femtosecond hyper-Rayleigh scattering at 880 and 800 nm, and depolarization studies show that the NLO responses of the symmetric species are strongly 2D, with dominant "off-diagonal" β(zyy) components. Stark (electroabsorption) spectroscopic measurements on the ICT bands afford estimated static first hyperpolarizabilities β(0). The directly and indirectly derived β values are large, and the Stark-derived β(0) response for one of the new salts is several times greater than that determined for (E)-4'-(dimethylamino)-N-methyl-4-stilbazolium hexafluorophosphate. These Stark spectroscopic studies also permit quantitative comparisons with related 2D, binuclear Ru(II) ammine complex salts.

Combining very large quadratic and cubic nonlinear optical responses in extended, tris-chelate metallochromophores with six pi-conjugated pyridinium substituents

We describe a series of nine new complex salts in which electron-rich Ru(II) or Fe(II) centers are connected via pi-conjugated bridges to six electron-accepting N-methyl-/N-arylpyridinium groups. This work builds upon our previous preliminary studies (Coe , B. J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2005, 127, 13399-13410; J. Phys. Chem. A 2007, 111, 472-478), with the aims of achieving greatly enhanced NLO properties and also combining large quadratic and cubic effects in potentially redox-switchable molecules. Characterization has involved various techniques, including electronic absorption spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. The complexes display intense, visible d --> pi* metal-to-ligand charge-transfer (MLCT) bands, and their pi --> pi* intraligand charge-transfer (ILCT) absorptions in the near-UV region show molar extinction coefficients as high as ca. 3.5 x 10(5) M(-1) cm(-1). Molecular quadratic nonlinear optical (NLO) responses beta have been determined by using hyper-Rayleigh scattering at 800 and 1064 nm and also via Stark (electroabsorption) spectroscopic studies. The directly and indirectly derived beta values are very large, with the Stark-based static first hyperpolarizabilities beta(0) reaching as high as ca. 10(-27) esu, and generally increase on extending the pi-conjugation and enhancing the electron-accepting strength of the ligands. Cubic NLO properties have also been measured by using the Z-scan technique, revealing relatively high two-photon absorption cross sections of up to 2500 GM at 750 nm.

The Na2X Superalkali Species (X=SH, SCH3, OCH3,CN, N3) as Building Blocks in the Na2XY Salts (Y=MgCl3, Cl, NO2). An Ab Initio Study of the Electric Propertiesof the Na2XY Salts

Vertical and adiabatic ionization potentials of Na2X (X = SH, SCH3, OCH3, CN, and N3) superalkali molecules have been studied using the ab initio methods. The smallest vertical ionization potential was calculated for the Na2OCH3 system (4.365 eV). The Na2X molecules were found to be capable of forming stable [Na2X]+[Y]– salts with the species exhibiting various electron affinities (Y = MgCl3, Cl, NO2). The dipole moments, polarizabilities, and first-order hyperpolarizabilities of the Na2XY ionic salts were calculated and discussed. It was found that the Na2XNO2 molecules possess extraordinary large values of anisotropy of polarizabilities (in the 15.5–28.2 × 10–24 esu range) and the first-order hyperpolarizbilities (spanning the 597.8–1295.7 × 10–30 esu range).

Structures and large NLO responses of new electrides: Li-doped fluorocarbon chain

An alkali-metal-doped effect on the nonlinear optical (NLO) property in new electrides is studied. The electrides are formed by doping alkali atom Li into a fluorocarbon chain H-(CF2-CH2)3-H. Six stable structures of the Lin-H-(CF2-CH2)3-H (n = 1, 2) complexes with all real frequencies are obtained at the MP2/6-31+G (d) level. Among these six structures, the largest first static hyperpolarizabilities (beta(0)) are found to be 76,978 au, which is much larger than the beta(0) value of 112 au for H-(CF2-CH2)3-H. Clearly, the Li-atom-doped effect on the first hyperpolarizability is dramatic. Three interesting relationships between the structure and beta(0) value have been observed. (1) For the one-Li-atom-doped systems as well as for the structures with two opposite Li atoms, the shorter the distance between the Li atom and difluoromethyl group, the larger the beta(0) value. (2) The beta(0) values of the two-Li-atom-doped chains are much larger than those of the one-Li-atom-doped systems, except for the case of cis-AB where the Li-Li distance (2.847 Angstrom) is close to the bond length of the Li2 molecule (2.672 Angstrom). (3) For the two-Li-atom-doped chains, the beta(0) value increases as the Li-Li distance increases. These relationships between the structure and beta(0) value may be beneficial to experimentalists for designing electrides with large NLO responses by using the alkali-metal-doped effect.

Theoretical Study of One- and Two-Photon Absorption Properties of Octupolar D2d and D3 Bipyridyl Metal Complexes

The molecular equilibrium structures, electronic structures, and one- and two-photon absorption (TPA) properties of C2v (Zn(II), Fe(II) and Cu(I)) dipolar and D2d (Zn(II) and Cu(I)) and D3 (Zn(II)) octupolar metal complexes featuring different functionalized bipyridyl ligands have been studied by the ZINDO-SOS method. The calculated results show that one- and two-photon absorption properties of metal complexes are strongly influenced by the nature of the ligands (donor end groups and pi linkers) and metal ions as well as by the symmetry of the complexes. The length of the pi-conjugated backbone, the Lewis acidity of the metal ions, and the increase of ligand-to-metal ratio result in a substantial enhancement of the TPA cross sections of metal complexes. Substitution of C=N and N=N for C=C plays an important role in altering the maximum TPA wavelengths and the maximum TPA cross sections of metal complexes. Of them, the C=N substituted metal complexes have relatively large TPA cross sections. Replacing styryl with thienylvinyl makes the one-photon absorption wavelength red shift and at the same time leads to a great decrease of the maximum TPA cross sections of metal complexes. The possible reason is discussed. In the range 500-1250 nm, octupolar metal complexes exhibit intense TPAs and therefore are promising candidates for TPA materials.

Donor−Acceptor−Donor Tetrazines Containing a Ferrocene Unit: Synthesis, Electrochemical and Spectroscopic Properties

Donor-acceptor-donor tetrazines containing ferrocene moieties and phenyl unit as a pi-bridge have been synthesized and characterized. UV-vis spectroscopic and cyclic voltamperometric results indicate sizable intramolecular charge transfer interactions in the ground state when the ferrocene is directly bound to the tetrazine. On the other hand, the results show reduction of the electron-donor strength of ferrocene moieties when there is a phenyl linkage. Both tetrazines display a high reduction potential. The role of ferrocenyl groups appear to be detrimental to maximize the cubic hyperpolarizability gamma of tetrazines, as compared to purely organic groups such as thiophene. A possible explanation for this behavior may originate from metal-to-ligand charge transfer processes.

Acceptor or Donor (Diaryl B or N) Substituted Octupolar Truxene: Synthesis, Structure, and Charge-Transfer-Enhanced Fluorescence

Two diaryl B- and N-substituted truxene charge-transfer compounds B3 and N3 have been synthesized. The fluorescence intensities of several nonfunctionalized truxene compounds are 1 order of magnitude weaker than that of B3 and N3. To reveal the structure-property correlations, the X-ray structures of B3 and N3 and their precursors 3 and 4 have been determined. The extended molecular dimension, the especially shortened B-C bond, and the improved planarity of B3 can serve as direct structural evidence for the charge transfer.

Synthesis, Structural Studies, Theoretical Calculations, and Linear and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Terpyridyl Lanthanide Complexes: New Evidence for the Contribution of f Electrons to the NLO Activity

The synthesis and structural, photophysical, and second-order nonlinear optical (NLO) properties of a novel lanthanide terpyridyl-like complex family LLn(NO(3))(3) (Ln = La, Gd, Dy, Yb, and Y) are reported. The isostructural character of this series in solution and in the solid state has been established on the basis of X-ray diffraction analysis in the cases of yttrium and gadolinium complexes, theoretical optimization of geometry (DFT), and NMR spectroscopy. The absorption, emission, and solvatochromic properties of the free terpyridyl-like ligand L were thoroughly investigated, and the twist intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) character of the lowest energy transition was confirmed by theoretical calculation (TDDFT and CIS). The similar ionochromic effect of the different lanthanide ions was evidenced by the similar UV-visible spectra of the complete family of complexes. On the other hand, the quadratic hyperpolarizability coefficient beta, measured by the harmonic light scattering (HLS) technique, is clearly dependent on the nature of the metal, and a careful examination of the particular case of yttrium unambiguously confirms the contribution of metal f electrons to the NLO activity.