Forward (singlet–singlet) and backward (triplet–triplet) energy transfer in a dendrimer with peripheral naphthalene units and a benzophenone core

Efficient Energy Transfer in a Rylene Imide-Based Heterodimer: The Role of Intramolecular Electronic Coupling

The development of antenna molecules with simplified structures can effectively avoid the complex exciton dynamics resulting from conformational mobility. Two distinct heterodimers TP and TBP comprising a perylenediimide (PDI) donor and terrylenediimide (TDI) acting as an energy sink were investigated. Tuned by varying functionalization positions, the bay-to-bay-linked TP offers a strong chromophore coupling, while the bay-to-N-linked TBP exhibits a weak chromophore coupling. Using transient absorption spectroscopy, we found that TP underwent ultrafast vibrational relaxation (τ_VR < 400 fs) from upper vibrational energy levels of the singlet states after pumping at 490 nm, and followed by electron transfer (ET, τ_ET = 2.5 ps) from TDI to PDI. TBP exhibited ultrafast excitation energy transfer (EET, τ_EET = 0.48 ± 0.1 ps) from the excited PDI donor to TDI acceptor, and the subsequent charge transfer (CT) process was almost quenched. This result provides insight into designing novel small molecules capable of efficient energy transfer.

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.

Photochemical properties of enediyne-cored dendrimers bearing naphthalenes at the periphery

A novel series of trans and cis enediyne-cored dendrimers bearing naphthalenes at the periphery were synthesized and their photochemical properties were examined. The trans/cis isomer ratio in the photostationary state was dependent on the excitation site in the dendrimers. When the enediyne core was selectively excited, the trans/cis isomer ratio in the photostationary state was either around 50/50 or a cis-rich mixture in all dendrimers due to the larger molar extinction coefficient of the trans-enediynes. On the other hand, when naphthalene was excited, a trans-rich mixture was unexpectedly obtained in higher generation dendrimers even though the energy transfer efficiency was almost quantitative in the trans dendrimers. These results could be explained by the energy transfer process, which was different depending on the geometric isomerism of the enediyne core.

Intramolecular energy transfer and photoisomerization in stilbene dendrimers

Stilbene dendrimers with energy harvesting chromophores, such as naphthalene and benzophenone, have been prepared and their photochemical and photophysical properties have been examined. These dendrimers underwent trans–cis mutual photoisomerization on excitation of the core stilbene or the peripheral naphthalene and benzophenone chromophores through several energy transfer processes, and photophysical processes such as intersystem crossing finally resulted in cis-trans isomerization of the core stilbene.

Advances in Photofunctional Dendrimers for Solar Energy Conversion

Dendrimers are regularly and hierarchically branched synthetic macromolecules with numerous chain ends all emanating from a single core, which makes them attractive candidates for energy conversion applications. During photosynthesis and photocatalysis, photoinduced electron transfer and energy transfer are the main processes involved. Studies on these processes in dendritic systems are critical for the future applications of dendrimers in photochemical energy conversion and other optoelectronic devices. In this Perspective, the recent advances of photofunctional dendrimers in energy conversion based on light-harvesting systems, solar cells, and photochemical production of hydrogen will be discussed. The electron-transfer and energy-transfer characteristics in light-harvesting photofunctional dendrimers and the regulation of the electron-transfer process and the stabilization of the charge separation state in hydrogen photoproduction are emphasized.

Catalytic solid substrate-room-temperature phosphorimetry detection for trace cadmium with Cd2+ -3.5-generation polyamidoamine dendrimer-Tween-80 complex

3.5-Generation polyamidoamine dendrimers (3.5-G-D) emitted strong and stable room-temperature phosphorescence (RTP) on filter paper when Pb2+ was used as a heavy atom perturber. The RTP signal of 3.5-G-D was sharply enhanced upon the formation of 3.5-G-D-Tween-80 micelle compound. The complex Cd2+ -3.5-G-D-Tween-80, generated in the coordination reaction between Cd2+ and the tertiary amidocyanogen on the outer layer of 3.5-G-D in 3.5-G-D-Tween-80 micelle compound, could catalyze KBrO3 to oxidize 3.5-G-D in 3.5-G-D-Tween-80, which caused the sharp quenching of the RTP signal of the system. The phosphorescence intensity change (ΔI(p) ) of the system had a linear relationship with the content of Cd2+. Thus a new catalytic solid substrate-room-temperature phosphorimetry (SS-RTP) for the determination of trace cadmium has been established. This highly selective and sensitive method has been applied to determine trace cadmium in biological samples with a limit of detection (LD) of 1.2 ag per spot (when the sample volume was 0.4 μL per spot, the corresponding concentration was 3.0 × 10(-15)  g mL(-1) ), the results agreeing with those obtained by atomic absorption spectrometry. The mechanism of catalytic SS-RTP for the determination of trace cadmium was also discussed.

Photoactive and Electroactive Dendrimers: Future Trends and Applications

The initial interest in dendrimer chemistry was the synthesis of such aesthetically pleasant macromolecules. Nowadays, the field is moving to applications in various multidisciplinary areas, such as medicine, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering, i.e. at the interface of many disciplines. This short review describes some promising applications of photoactive and electroactive dendrimers as artificial enzymes, molecular batteries, sensors with signal amplification, photoswitchable hosts, systems for energy up-conversion, and light-harvesting antennas. The reported examples clearly show that these applications take advantage of the unique aspects of dendrimer structure: (i) three-dimensional array; (ii) generation-dependent size; (iii) presence of selected functional units in predetermined sites; and (iv) endo- and exo-receptor capabilities.

Light Intensity Effects on Photoinduced Charge Separation Parameters in a Molecular Triad Based on an Iridium(III) Bis(terpyridine) Unit

The effect of photon flux on the yield and lifetime of charge separation over the extreme components of a D-Ir-A triad, where D is a triphenyl amine electron donor, A is a naphthalene bis(imide) electron acceptor and Ir is an Ir(III) bis(terpyridine) complex, has been investigated. In usual laboratory conditions, with nanosecond and picosecond laser pulses in the 4-8 mJ range, biphotonic processes take place. Biphotonic products and their evolution can introduce complications in reaction mechanisms and their interpretation but can also drastically reduce the yield and the lifetime of the charge-separated state. In the present case, after discussion of several possible mechanisms, the process detrimental to charge separation is ascribed to absorption of a photon by the photogenerated charge-separated state D(+)-Ir-A(-).

Determination of trace α-fetoprotein variant by affinity adsorption solid substrate-room temperature phosphorimetry and its application to the forecast of human diseases

In the presence of ion perturber LiAc, 4-generation polyamidoamine dendrimers (4G-D) could emit strong and stable room temperature phosphorescence (RTP) signal at lambda(max)(ex)/lambda(max)(em) = 511.8/675.3 nm on nitrocellulose membrane (NCM), and Triton X-100 could sharply enhance the RTP signal of 4G-D. Triton X-100-4G-D was used to label concanavalin agglutinin (Con A) to get the labeling product Triton X-100-4G-D-Con A. Quantitative specific affinity adsorption (AA) reaction between Triton X-100-4G-D-Con A and alpha-fetoprotein variant (AFP-V) could be carried out on the surface of NCM, whose product Triton X-100-4G-D-Con A-AFP-V could emit strong and stable RTP and its deltaI(p) was proportional to the content of AFP-V. According to the facts above, a new affinity adsorption solid substrate-room temperature phosphorimetry (AA-SS-RTP) for the determination of trace AFP-V by Con A labeled with Triton X-100-4G-D was established. Detection limits of this method were 0.23 fg spot(-1) (direct method, corresponding concentration: 5.8x10(-13) g mL(-1)) and 0.13 fg spot(-1) (sandwich method, corresponding concentration: 3.2x10(-13) g mL(-1)). It has been successfully applied to determine the content of AFP-V in human serum and forecast human diseases, for its high sensitivity, long RTP lifetime, good repeatability, high accuracy and little background perturbation with lambda(max)(em) at the long wavelength area. Meanwhile, the mechanism for the determination of trace AFP-V using AA-SS-RTP was also discussed.

Benzil-tethered precipitons for controlling solubility: a round-trip energy-transfer mechanism in the isomerization of extended stilbene analogues

We are investigating photoresponsive molecules called "precipitons" that undergo a solubility change co-incident with isomerization. Isomerization can be induced by light or by catalytic reagents. Previous work demonstrated that covalent attachment of a metal complex, Ru(II)(bpy)3, greatly accelerates photoisomerization and influences the photostationary state. In this paper, we describe precipitons (1,2-biphenylethenes; analogous to stilbenes) that are activated by a covalently attached organic sensitizer (benzil). We find that isomerization of these stilbene analogues is little effected by the presence of benzil in solution but that the intramolecular benzil effect is to increase the rate of isomerization and to significantly change the photostationary state. What is most interesting about these observations is that the precipiton is the primary chromophore in this bichromophoric system (precipiton absorbance is many times greater than benzil absorbance in the 300-400 nm range), yet the neighboring benzil has a significant effect on the rate and the photostationary state. The effect of unattached benzil on the rate was small, about a 24% increase in rate as compared with 4-6-fold changes for an attached benzil. We speculate that the isomerization process occurs by a "round-trip" energy-transfer mechanism. Initial excitation of the precipiton chromophore initiates a sequence that includes (1) formation of the precipiton singlet state, (2) singlet excitation transfer from the precipiton unit to the benzil, (3) benzil-centered intersystem crossing to the localized benzil triplet state, (4) triplet energy transfer from the benzil moiety back to the precipiton, and (5) isomerization.

Structure-Dependent Photoinduced Electron Transfer in Fullerodendrimers with Light-Harvesting Oligophenylenevinylene Terminals

Oligophenylenevinylene (OPV)-terminated phenylenevinylene dendrons G1-G4 with one, two, four, and eight "side-arms", respectively, were prepared and attached to C60 by a 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition of azomethine ylides generated in situ from dendritic aldehydes and N-methylglycine. The relative electronic absorption of the OPV moiety increases progressively along the fullerodendrimer family C60G1-C60G4, reaching a 99:1 ratio for C60G4 (antenna effect). UV/Vis and near-IR luminescence and transient absorption spectroscopy was used to elucidate photoinduced energy and electron transfer in C60G1-C60G4 as a function of OPV moiety size and solvent polarity (toluene, dichloromethane, benzonitrile), taking into account the fact that the free-energy change for electron transfer is the same along the series owing to the invariability of the donor-acceptor couple. Regardless of solvent, all the fullerodendrimers exhibit ultrafast OPV-->C60 singlet energy transfer. In CH2Cl2, the OPV-->C60 electron transfer from the lowest fullerene singlet level ((1)C60*) is slightly exergonic (deltaG(CS) approximately = 0.07 eV), but is observed, to an increasing extent, only in the largest systems C60G2-C60G4 with lower activation barriers for electron transfer. This effect has been related to a decrease of the reorganization energy upon enlargement of the molecular architecture. Structural factors are also at the origin of an unprecedented OPV-->C60 electron transfer observed for C60G3 and C60G4 in apolar toluene, whereas in benzonitrile, electron transfer occurs in all cases. Monitoring of the lowest fullerene triplet state by sensitized singlet oxygen luminescence and transient absorption spectroscopy shows that this level is populated through intersystem crossing and is not involved in photoinduced electron transfer.

Direct Observation of the Intramolecular Triplet−Triplet Energy Transfer in Poly(aryl ether) Dendrimers

A series of benzophenone (BP) and naphthalene (NA) labeled poly(aryl ether) dendrimers (BP-Gn-NA), generations 1-4, were synthesized, and their photophysical properties were examined. Flash photolysis demonstrates that the triplet energy in BP-Gn-NA can be transferred from the peripheral BP chromophores to the core NA group with the efficiencies of ca. 0.97, 0.96, 0.88, and 0.54 and with the rate constants of 1.4x10(8), 1.2x10(8), 9.5x10(7), and 1.3x10(7) s-1 at room temperature for generations 1-4, respectively. The transient absorption spectra of BP-Gn-NA show clearly the formation of the triplet NA absorption along with the decay of the triplet BP one with an isosbestic point at 475 nm, which gives direct evidence of the triplet energy transfer from the periphery BP chromphores to the core NA group. The phosphorescence of the NA group attached to the focal point was observed when the periphery BP chromophores were selectively irradiated in BP-G1-NA at 77 K. The triplet energy transfer occurs at 77 K with the efficiencies of 1.0, 0.16, 0.17, and 0.21 for generations 1-4, respectively. The intramolecular triplet energy transfer is proposed to proceed mainly via a through space mechanism.

Phosphorescent oxygen sensor with dendritic protection and two-photon absorbing antenna

Imaging oxygen in 3D with submicron spatial resolution can be made possible by combining phosphorescence quenching technique with multiphoton laser scanning microscopy. Because Pt and Pd porphyrin-based phosphorescent dyes, traditionally used as phosphors in biological oxygen measurements, exhibit extremely low two-photon absorption (2PA) cross-sections, we designed a nanosensor for oxygen, in which a 2P absorbing antenna is coupled to a metalloporphyrin core via intramolecular energy transfer (ET) with the purpose of amplifying the 2PA induced phosphorescence of the metalloporphyrin. The central component of the device is a polyfunctionalized Pt porphyrin, whose triplet state emission at ambient temperatures is strong, occurs in the near infrared and is sensitive to O2. The 2PA chromophores are chosen in such a way that their absorption is maximal in the near infrared (NIR) window of tissue (e.g., 700-900 nm), while their fluorescence is overlapped with the absorption band(s) of the core metalloporphyrin, ensuring an efficient antenna-core resonance ET. The metalloporphyrin-antenna construct is embedded inside the protecting dendritic jacket, which isolates the core from interactions with biological macromolecules, controls diffusion of oxygen and makes the entire sensor water-soluble. Several Pt porphyrin-coumarin based sensors were synthesized and their photophyics studied to evaluate the proposed design.

Dual Electron Transfer Pathways from 4,4‘-Dimethoxybenzophenone Ketyl Radical in the Excited State to Parent Molecule in the Ground State

Dual intermolecular electron transfer (ELT) pathways from 4,4'-dimethoxybenzophenone (1) ketyl radical (1H*) in the excited state [1H*(D1)] to the ground-state 4,4'-dimethoxybenzophenone [1(S0)] were found in 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MTHF) by observing bis(4-methoxyphenyl)methanol cation (1H+) and 4,4'-dimethoxybenzophenone radical anion (1*-) during nanosecond-picosecond two-color two-laser flash photolysis. ELT pathway I involved the two-photon ionization of 1H* following the injection of electron to the solvent. The solvated electron was quickly trapped by 1(S0) to produce 1*-. ELT pathway II was a self-quenching-like ELT from 1H*(D1) to 1(S0) to give 1H+ and 1*-. From the fluorescence quenching of 1H*(D1), the ELT rate constant was determined to be 1.0 x 10(10) M(-1) s(-1), which is close to the diffusion-controlled rate constant of MTHF. The self-quenching-like ELT mechanism was discussed on the basis of Marcus' ELT theory.