Photophysical Properties of Intramolecular Charge-Transfer Excited Singlet State of Aminofluorenone Derivatives

Coupling between tautomerism and radiationless deactivation in porphycenes

Quantum yields of fluorescence of porphycenes – porphyrin isomers – can vary by orders of magnitude, even for very similar derivatives, such as meso-dimethyl- vs. meso-tetramethylporphycene. In weakly emitting porphycenes the fluorescence intensity strongly depends on viscosity and can be recovered by placing a molecule in a rigid environment. We postulate that the efficient nonradiative deactivation is due to the quantum effect, delocalization of the inner protons. The delocalization, which increases with the strength of intramolecular hydrogen bonds may induce structural changes that lead to distortion from planarity and, as a result, efficient S0 ← S1 internal conversion. The effect seems to be general, as indicated by good correlation between the quantum yield of fluorescence and the distance between H-bonded nitrogen atoms, the latter being a reliable measure of hydrogen bonding strength. Based on the available photophysical and X-ray data, such correlation was found so far for over 20 differently substituted porphycenes.

Direct Photocatalyzed Hydrogen Atom Transfer (HAT) for Aliphatic C-H Bonds Elaboration

Direct photocatalyzed hydrogen atom transfer (d-HAT) can be considered a method of choice for the elaboration of aliphatic C–H bonds. In this manifold, a photocatalyst (PC_HAT) exploits the energy of a photon to trigger the homolytic cleavage of such bonds in organic compounds. Selective C–H bond elaboration may be achieved by a judicious choice of the hydrogen abstractor (key parameters are the electronic character and the molecular structure), as well as reaction additives. Different are the classes of PCs_HAT available, including aromatic ketones, xanthene dyes (Eosin Y), polyoxometalates, uranyl salts, a metal-oxo porphyrin and a tris(amino)cyclopropenium radical dication. The processes (mainly C–C bond formation) are in most cases carried out under mild conditions with the help of visible light. The aim of this review is to offer a comprehensive survey of the synthetic applications of photocatalyzed d-HAT.

Chemical transformations of push-pull fluorenones: push-pull dibenzodicyanofulvenes as well as fluorenone- and dibenzodicyanofulvene-tetracyanobutadiene conjugates

Push-pull fluorenones (FOs) were synthesized by treating a benzopentalenequinone (BPO) derivative with alkynes that bear an electron-rich aniline moiety via a regioselective [4 + 2] cycloaddition (CA) followed by a [4 + 1] retrocycloaddition (RCA). The resulting FOs were readily converted into dibenzodicyanofulvenes (DBDCFs) by treatment with malononitrile in the presence of TiCl4 and pyridine. The FOs and DBDCFs exhibit intramolecular charge-transfer (ICT) that manifests in absorptions at 350-650 nm and amphoteric electrochemical behavior. Furthermore, FOs and DBDCFs that contain a C[triple bond, length as m-dash]C bond react with tetracyanoethylene in a formal [2 + 2] CA followed by a retro-electrocyclization to afford sterically congested tetracyanobutadiene (TCBD) conjugates. The substituent (H or Me) on the aromatic ring adjacent to the butadiene moiety thereby determines whether the butadiene adopts an s-cis or s-trans conformation, and thus controls the physicochemical properties of the resulting TCBDs. The TCBD conjugates exhibit ICT absorptions (≤800 nm) together with up to four reversible reduction steps.

Stereoelectronics of the Hydrogen-Bond-Induced Fluorescence Quenching of 3-Aminofluorenones with Alcohols

Two derivatives of 3-amino-9-fluorenone (1) bearing one (2) and two methyl (3) groups flanking the carbonyl group are prepared. Comparison of their photophysical properties show that all suffer efficient radiationless deactivation in the presence of alcohols. Preferential solvation studies with mono alcohols reveal that a single H-bonding interaction quenches the excited states of 1 and 2, but not that of 3. In contrast, a single molecule of ethylene glycol quenches all three. These results are interpreted in a quenching mechanism similar to one proposed by Inoue and co-workers, but where an out-of-plane H-bond with the carbonyl group gives rise to an emissive species, while an in-plane H-bond results in quenching.

Spectral and molecular modeling investigations of supramolecular complexes of mefenamic acid and aceclofenac with α- and β-cyclodextrin

Inclusion complexes of mefenamic acid (MFA) and aceclofenac (ALF) with α- and β-cyclodextrins (CDs) in aqueous medium were investigated by absorption, fluorescence, time-resolved fluorescence methods. The solid inclusion complexes between drugs and CDs were characterized by SEM, TEM, FT-IR, ¹H NMR, DSC and powder XRD techniques. Spectral studies indicated that both CDs form 1:1 inclusion complex with MFA and ALF. The experimental results revealed that the inclusion process is a spontaneous process. Time-resolved fluorescence studies suggested that ALF exhibited biexponential decay in aqueous and triexponential decay in CD whereas significant enhancement of lifetime of decay components of MFA was observed. Morphologies of drug-CD complexes observed by TEM demonstrate that self-aggregates of MFA/α-CD, ALF/α-CD and ALF/β-CD were nano-sized particles while vesicles were observed for MFA/β-CD. A spatial arrangement of inclusion complex is proposed based on ¹H NMR and PM3 results. Investigations of thermodynamic and electronic properties confirmed the stability of the inclusion complex.

Rhodanine-based dyes absorbing in the entire visible spectrum

A series of new broad-absorbing rhodanine-fluorene dyes conjugated with triarylamines are presented. Spectroscopic and electrochemical characterizations, along with theoretical DFT calculations, unveil the electronic and optical properties of the dyes.

Excited-state properties of fluorenones: influence of substituents, solvent and macrocyclic encapsulation

Fluorescence and radiationless deactivation of methoxy-substituted fluorenones are strongly guided by location(s) of the substituent(s) in the fluorenone core.

Studies of the solvatochromic emission properties of N-aroylurea derivatives II: influence of hydrogen-bonding interactions

The solvatochromic emission properties of five naphthoylurea derivatives with different substitution patterns at the naphthoylurea functionality were investigated, with a particular focus on the influence of inter- and intramolecular H-bonding interactions. The bathochromic shifts of the emission maxima correlate well with the acceptor number or Catalán's acidity of the solvent (Δλ = 47-86 nm), indicating an excited species with a pronounced negative charge that is stabilized by H-bond donating (HBD) solvents. In media with restricted free volume the formation of the charged species is not favored, because the required conformational change to establish an intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) between the fluorophore and the acylurea substituent is hindered, and the emission mainly originates from the locally excited state. This relationship between the alignment of the naphthoyl carbonyl functionality relative to the naphthyl ring and the spectroscopic shift was confirmed by the comparison of the ground state conformation and the emission spectra of the naphthoylurea derivatives in the solid state. Time-resolved experiments revealed different excited entities, whose lifetimes are significantly influenced by the HBD properties and the temperature of the environment. With few exceptions the naphthoylurea derivatives exhibit only two emissive species in the nanosecond range. All experimental data point to conformational relaxation and solvent reorganization leading to the cis and trans isomers of one preferential conformer with respect to the acylurea unit. The structure of the preferred conformation is mainly determined by the possible inter- or intramolecular H-bonds and is therefore also strongly influenced by the HBD and H-bond accepting (HBA) properties of the polar solvents. As the NH groups of the acylurea functionality contribute mainly to the entire inter- and intramolecular H-bond arrangement the variation of the substitution pattern of the urea unit, specifically the presence and position of the NH groups, leads to derivatives with significantly different steady-state and time-resolved emission properties.

Selective formation of twisted intramolecular charge transfer and excimer emissions on 2,7-bis(4-diethylaminophenyl)-fluorenone by choice of solvent

We designed and synthesized a donor-acceptor-donor dye consisting of a 2,7-disubstituted fluorenone with diethylaminophenyl moieties present as strong electron donating groups. Switching between twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) emission and excimer emission was achieved, with no ground state changes, by simply changing the solvent used. In a nonpolar solvent, excimer emission was observed; with increasing polarity, the emission gradually disappeared, and the TICT emission appeared.

Competition between solvent quenching and indole quenching of 9-fluorenone: a spectroscopic and computational study

The interaction between 9-fluorenone, various indoles and solvents has been studied using steady-state fluorescence spectroscopy and quantum chemical calculations. It was determined that polar protic solvents such as methanol and ethanol significantly quenched the fluorescence of 9-fluorenone but various indoles reversed the solvent quenching. The effect of various solvents on the 9-fluorenone carbonyl vibration was investigated using infrared spectroscopy. Ab initio calculations using Gaussian03 were also carried out in order to determine the minimum energy conformations of these systems along with binding energies.

Spectroscopic determination of solvation shell composition of fluorenone and 4-hydroxyfluorenone in binary solvent mixtures

Preferential solvation of fluorenone (9Fl) and 4-hydroxyfluorenone (4HOFl) in binary solvent mixtures (cyclohexane-tetrahydrofuran (CH-THF) and cyclohexane-ethanol (CH-EtOH)) has been studied using steady-state spectroscopic measurements. The solvation of the fluorenones, both in the ground and in the excited states, exhibits a non-linear solvatochromic shifts as a function of polar component in the binary solvent mixtures. The results of spectroscopic measurements were used to calculate, according to Bakhshiev's and Kiselev's theory, the fluorescence spectra of solvates having different number of polar component in the first solvation shell. The different features of fluorescence spectra of molecule under study in CH-THF and CH-EtOH are explained by the absence and presence of specific solute-solvent interactions (hydrogen bond).

Determination of reorganization energy of fluorenone and 4-hydroxyfluorenone in neat and binary solvent mixtures

Steady-state absorption and fluorescence measurements of fluorenone and 4-hydroxyfluorenone in neat and binary solvent mixtures were used to explore the reorganization energy in liquid system. The results of spectroscopic measurements were used to calculate, according to Marcus theory, the outer-sphere solvent reorganization energy, lambda(0), and the internal molecular reorganization energy, lambda(in). Preferential solvation of fluorenone and 4-hydroxyfluorenone in binary solvent mixtures has been studied by monitoring the outer-sphere solvent reorganization energy. In cyclohexane-tetrahydrofuran mixtures, the deviation from linearity in the lambda(0) versus the solution polarity is due to non-specific dipolar solvent-solute interactions. For cyclohexane-ethanol binary mixtures, both non-specific and specific (hydrogen bond) interactions contribute to the observed changes.

Effect of Hydroxylic Solvent on the Fluorescence Behavior of Some Bioactive 9-Oxo-imidazo[1,2-a]purine Derivatives

The spectral and photophysical behavior of four fluorescent 9-oxo-imidazo[1,2-a]purine derivatives containing pyridyl, pyridylphenyl, phenyl, and biphenylyl substituents at the C(6) position of the tricyclic skeleton is described. The studies were performed in several aprotic and protic organic solvents using absorption spectroscopy as well as steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. The results are also presented of TDDFT calculations on singlet-singlet excitation energies and oscillator strengths for two models of 9-oxo-imidazo[1,2-a]purine, with phenyl or pyridyl substituents, both in the gas phase and in methanol solution. While the derivatives with aryl substituents did not show any significant dependence of their static and dynamic fluorescence properties on the nature of the solvent, the compounds containing a pyridine residue exhibited a remarkable reduction of their fluorescence quantum yields and lifetimes in the alcoholic solutions. The solute-solvent hydrogen-bonding interaction in the first excited singlet state is responsible for the fast radiationless decay rates determined for pyridyl- and pyridylphenyl-substituted compounds in protic solvents. The results of experimental and theoretical studies show that the hydrogen of the alcohols' hydroxyl group and the nitrogen atom of the pyridine moiety are involved in the interaction. The fluorescence-quenching experiments performed for the pyridyl-substituted 9-oxo-imidazo[1,2-a]purine derivative using trifluoroethanol, methanol, and butanol as quenchers revealed that the quenching efficiencies, expressed by the Stern-Volmer quenching constants, correlate with the H-bond donating abilities of the alcohols. The quenching is a dynamic process, and the H-bonded complex formed is nonfluorescent. The experimentally determined and the calculated values of the dipole moment change associated with the electronic excitation indicate that the excited S(1) states of all of the molecules studied in this work have an intramolecular charge-transfer character and that electronic charge is transferred to the C(6) substituent upon excitation. Thus, the ability of the pyridyl substituent nitrogen atom to act as an H-bond acceptor in the excited S(1) state is enhanced. The 6-pyridyl-9-oxo-imidazo[1,2-a]purine presents a novel fluorophore, which, besides its medical applications, may be useful as a sensor of hydroxyl groups in microorganized systems.

Role of Excited State Intramolecular Charge Transfer in the Photophysical Properties of Norfloxacin and Its Derivatives

The photophysical properties of 1-ethyl-6-fluoro-7-(1-piperazinyl)-1,4-dihydro-4-oxoquinoline-3-carboxylic acid (norfloxacin, NFX) and some of its derivatives have been studied to evaluate the role of the free carboxylic acid and the nonprotonated piperazinyl group in the behavior of the 1,4-dihydro-4-oxoquinoline ring. Steady state and time-resolved fluorescence measurements at different pHs provide clear evidence in favor of singlet excited-state deactivation of NFX and its N(4')-methyl derivative pefloxacin (PFX) via intramolecular electron transfer from the N(4') atom of the piperazinyl ring to the fluoroquinolone (FQ) main system. This is a very efficient, energy-wasting pathway, which becomes dramatically enhanced in basic media. Acetylation at N(4') (as in ANFX) decreases the availability of the lone pair, making observable its fluorescence and the transient absorption spectrum of its triplet excited state even at high pH. It also reveals that the geometry of FQs changes from an almost sp3 hybridization of the N(1') of the piperazinyl substituent in the ground state to nearly sp2 in the singlet excited state (rehybridization accompanied by intramolecular charge transfer, RICT); accordingly, the singlet energy of ANFX is significantly lower than that of NFX and PFX. The fluorescence measurements using acetonitrile as a polar nonprotic organic solvent further support deactivation of the singlet excited state of nonacetylated NFX derivatives via intramolecular electron transfer from the N(4') atom.

Ultrafast Intermolecular Hydrogen Bond Dynamics in the Excited State of Fluorenone

Steady-state fluorescence and time-resolved absorption measurements in pico- and femtosecond time domain have been used to investigate the dynamics of hydrogen bond in the excited singlet (S(1)) state of fluorenone in alcoholic solvents. A comparison of the features of the steady-state fluorescence spectra of fluorenone in various kinds of media demonstrates that two spectroscopically distinct forms of fluorenone in the S(1) state, namely the non-hydrogen-bonded (or free) molecule as well as the hydrogen-bonded complex, are responsible for the dual-fluorescence behavior of fluorenone in solutions of normal alcoholic solvents at room temperature (298 K). However, in 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE), a strong hydrogen bond donating solvent, emission from only the hydrogen-bonded complex is observed. Significant differences have also been observed in the temporal evolution of the absorption spectroscopic properties of the S(1) state of fluorenone in protic and aprotic solvents following photoexcitation using 400 nm laser pulses. An ultrafast component representing the solvent-induced vibrational energy relaxation (VER) process has been associated with the dynamics of the S(1) state of fluorenone in all kinds of solvents. However, in protic solvents, in addition to the VER process, further evolution of the spectroscopic and dynamical properties of the S(1) state have been observed because of repositioning of the hydrogen bonds around the carbonyl group. In normal alcohols, two different kinds of hydrogen-bonded complex of the fluorenone-alcohol system with different orientations of the hydrogen bond with respect to the carbonyl group and the molecular plane of fluorenone have been predicted. On the other hand, in TFE, formation of only one kind of hydrogen-bonded complex has been observed. These observations have been supported by theoretical calculations of the geometries of the hydrogen-bonded complexes in the ground and the excited states of fluorenone. Linear correlation between the lifetimes of the equilibration process occurring because of repositioning of the hydrogen bonds and Debye or longitudinal relaxation times of the normal alcoholic solvents establish the fact that, in weakly hydrogen bond donating solvents, the hydrogen bond dynamics can be described as merely a solvation process. Whereas, in TFE, hydrogen bond dynamics is better described by a process of conversion between two distinct excited states, namely, the non-hydrogen-bonded form and the hydrogen-bonded complex.

Intramolecular and intermolecular hydrogen-bonding effects on photophysical properties of 2'-aminoacetophenone and its derivatives in solution

Effects of intra- and intermolecular hydrogen-bonds on the photophysical properties of 2'-aminoacetophenone derivatives (X-C6H4-COCH3) having a substituted amino group (X) with different hydrogen-bonding ability to the carbonyl oxygen (X: NH2(AAP), NHCH3(MAAP), N(CH3)2(DMAAP), NHCOCH3(AAAP), NHCOCF3(TFAAP)) are investigated by means of steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy and time-resolved thermal lensing. Based on the photophysical parameters obtained in aprotic solvents with different polarity and protic solvents with different hydrogen-bonding ability, the characteristic photophysical behavior of the 2'-aminoacetophenone derivatives is discussed in terms of hydrogen-bonding and n,pi*-pi,pi* vibronic coupling. The dominant deactivation process of AAP and MAAP in nonpolar aprotic solvents is the extremely fast internal conversion (k(ic)= 1.0 x 10(11) s(-1) for AAP and 3.9 x 10(10) s(-1) for MAAP in n-hexane). The internal conversion rates of both compounds decrease markedly with increasing solvent polarity, suggesting that vibronic interactions between close-lying S1(pi,pi*) and S2(n,pi*) states lead to the large increase in the non-radiative decay rate of the lowest excited singlet state. It is also suggested that for MAAP, which has a stronger hydrogen-bond as compared to AAP, an intramolecular hydrogen-bonding induced deactivation is involved in the dissipation of the S1 state. For DMAAP, which cannot possess an intramolecular hydrogen-bond, the primary relaxation mechanism of the S1 state in nonpolar aprotic solvents is the intersystem crossing to the triplet state, whereas in protic solvents very efficient internal conversion due to intermolecular hydrogen-bonding is induced. In contrast, the fluorescence spectra of AAAP and TFAAP, which have an amino group with a much stronger hydrogen-bonding ability, give strongly Stokes-shifted fluorescence, indicating that these compounds undergo excited-state intramolecular proton transfer reaction upon electronic excitation.

Energy Dissipation Processes of Singlet-excited 1-Hydroxyfluorenone and its Hydrogen-bonded Complex with N-methylimidazole¶

Effects of solvent, pH and hydrogen bonding with N-methylimidazole (MIm) on the photophysical properties of 1-hydroxyfluorenone (1HOF) have been studied. Fluorescence lifetime, fluorescence quantum yield and triplet yield measurements demonstrated that intersystem crossing was the dominant process in apolar media and its rate constant significantly diminished with increasing solvent polarity. The acceleration of internal conversion in alcohols paralleled the strength of intermolecular hydrogen bonding. The faster energy dissipation from the singlet-excited state in cyclohexane was attributed to intramolecular hydrogen bonding. The pK(a) of 1HOF decreased from 10.06 to 5.0 on light absorption, and H(3)O(+) quenched the singlet-excited molecules in a practically diffusion-controlled reaction. On addition of MIm in toluene, dual fluorescence was observed, which was attributed to reversible formation of excited hydrogen-bonded ion pair. Rate constants for the various deactivation pathways were derived from the combined analysis of the steady-state and the time-resolved fluorescence results.