Photoinduced Electron Transfer between CdS and CdTe Nanoparticles in Colloidal Solutions

The photochemical behavior of solutions containing a mixture of CdS and CdTe nanoparticles under pulsed irradiation conditions was investigated. It was shown that electron transfer from the CdS particles to the CdTe nanoparticles occurs during the photoexcitation of such systems. The effectiveness of the process is increased with increase in the size of the CdTe nanoparticles. Such behavior is due to decrease in the potential of the CdTe conduction band with increase in the size of the nanoparticles as a result of the appearance of quantum-dimensional effects.     

Photoinduced phase transitions and helix untwisting in the SmC* phase of a novel cinnamoyl-based liquid crystal

A photoinduced phase transition and helix untwisting in a new liquid crystal forming the SmC* phase were studied in detail. The compound consists of a cinnamoyl photosensitive fragment with C?=?C double bond capable of photoisomerisation and photocycloaddition. It was shown that ultraviolet (UV) irradiation (365 nm) induces an extreme decrease in phase transitions temperatures (SmC*–SmA*, SmA*–N*, N*–I). Vertically aligned samples in the SmC* phase cause selective light reflection in the visible spectral range. The light action results in a noticeable helix untwisting that causes a shift in the selective light reflection peak to the long-wavelength spectral region. The temperature dependence of spontaneous polarisation P _s was measured and it was found that UV irradiation induces a decrease in the values of P _s. Photo-optical phenomena taking place in the liquid crystal are attributed to the formation of photoproducts having low anisometry, which disrupts mesophases.     

Photoinduced phase transitions

Employing actinic light to alter/stabilise a particular thermodynamic phase via the photo-isomerisation of the constituent molecules is an interesting tool to investigate soft matter from a new dimension. This article focuses on our recent results on several aspects of these non-equilibrium phase transitions, which are isothermal in nature. We specifically discuss (i) the influence of different parameters, such as confinement, applied electric field, pressure etc., on the dynamics associated with both the photochemical transition driving the equilibrium nematic to the non-equilibrium isotropic phase and the thermal back relaxation recovering the nematic phase, (ii) unique light-driven disorder–order transition in a reentrant system, (iii) dynamic self-assembly of the smectic A phase, which is stabilised only in the presence of actinic light, (iv) novel temperature-intensity phase diagrams and an example of primary and secondary photo-ferroelectric effects in an antiferroelectric smectic C system. These results highlight the fact that the actinic light can be used as a new tool to study phase transitions and the associated critical phenomena that could also bring about effects that are not seen in equilibrium situations.     

Distance-Dependent Electron Transfer Kinetics in Axially Connected Silicon Phthalocyanine-Fullerene Conjugates

The effect of donor-acceptor distance in controlling the rate of electron transfer in axially linked silicon phthalocyanine-C₆₀ dyads has been investigated. For this, two C₆₀-SiPc-C₆₀ dyads, 1 and 2 , varying in their donor-acceptor distance, have been newly synthesized and characterized. In the case of C₆₀-SiPc-C₆₀ 1 where the SiPc and C₆₀ are separated by a phenyl spacer, faster electron transfer was observed with k_cs equal to 2.7×10⁹ s⁻¹ in benzonitrile. However, in the case of C₆₀-SiPc-C₆₀ 2 , where SiPc and C₆₀ are separated by a biphenyl spacer, a slower electron transfer rate constant, k_cs=9.1×10⁸ s⁻¹, was recorded. The addition of an extra phenyl spacer in 2 increased the donor-acceptor distance by ∼4.3 Å, and consequently, slowed down the electron transfer rate constant by a factor of ∼3.7. The charge separated state lasted over 3 ns, monitoring time window of our femtosecond transient spectrometer. Complimentary nanosecond transient absorption studies revealed formation of ³SiPc* as the end product and suggested the final lifetime of the charge separated state to be in the 3–20 ns range. Energy level diagrams established to comprehend these mechanistic details indicated that the comparatively high-energy SiPc^.+-C₆₀^.− charge separated states (1.57 eV) populated the low-lying ³SiPc* (1.26 eV) prior returning to the ground state.     

Test‐Strip‐Based Fluorometric Detection of Fluoride in Aqueous Media with a BODIPY‐Linked Hydrogen‐Bonding Receptor

The measurement of biologically relevant anions, such as fluoride, is an important task in analytical chemistry, in particular, for dental health and osteoporosis. Although a large number of fluoride probes are known, the applicability under relevant conditions is limited to a few examples. To improve this situation, BODIPY‐amidothiourea dyes with varying hydrogen‐bond donating strengths were developed, the most H‐acidic of which ( 1 c ) could detect F^? from an inorganic source (NaF) in 50 % aqueous solution (DMSO/water 1:1, v/v) with 0.01 ppm sensitivity through selective fluorescence quenching by a photoinduced electron‐transfer (PET) process. Use of the probe and a reference dye with a test‐strip assay and a portable and rapidly recording lateral‐flow fluorescence reader made determination of F^? in neat aqueous solutions, such as spiked water samples and toothpaste extracts, possible in a self‐referenced manner, achieving a detection limit of 0.2 ppm.     

Mono-Heteroatom Substitution for Harnessing Excited-State Structural Planarization of Dihydrodibenzo[a,c]phenazines

With the aim of generalizing the structure–properties relationship of bending heterocyclic molecules that undergo prominent photoinduced structural planarization (PISP), a series of new dihydrodibenzo[ac]phenazine derivatives in which one nitrogen atom is replaced by oxygen ( PNO ), sulfur ( PNS ), selenium ( PNSe ), or dimethylmethanediyl ( PNC ) was strategically designed and synthesized. Compounds PNO , PNS , and PNSe have significantly nonplanar geometries in the ground state, which undergo PISP to give a planarlike conformer and hence a large emission Stokes shift. A combination of femtosecond early relaxation dynamics and computational approaches established an R*→I* (intermediate)→P* sequential kinetic pattern for PNS and PNSe , whereas PNO undergoes R*→P* one-step kinetics. The polarization ability of the substituted heteroatoms, which is in the order O<S<Se, correlates with their increase in π conjugation, and hence the Stokes shift of the emission is in the order PNO < PNS < PNSe . Compound PNSe with the largest PISP barrier was shown to be a highly sensitive viscosity probe. Further evidence for heteroatom-harnessing PISP is given by PNC , in which the dimethylmethanediyl substituent lacks lone pair electrons for π extension, showing the normal emission of the bent structure. The results led to the conclusion that PISP is ubiquitous in dihydrodibenzo[ac]phenazines, for which the driving force is elongation of the π delocalization to gain stabilization in the excited state.     

Photoinduced Decarboxylative Amino-Fluoroalkylation of Maleic Anhydride

A photoinduced decarboxylative three-component coupling reaction involving amine, maleic anhydride, and fluorinated alkyl iodides has been developed, leading to synthetically valuable fluoroalkyl-containing acrylamides with a high E selectivity. A broad array of substrates including monoprotected amino acid are capable coupling partners. Preliminary mechanistic studies suggest a stepwise process. This reaction represents the first example of photoinduced decarboxylative difunctionalization of maleic anhydride.     

Time-Resolved Fluorescence Spectroscopy Study on the Photophysical Behavior of Quantum Dots

Room-temperature time-resolved luminescence measurements on single CdSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) are presented. Fluorescence emission spectra were recorded over periods of up to 30 minutes with a time resolution as small as 6 ms. For QDs in ambient air, a clear 30–40 nm blue shift in the emission wavelength is observed, before the luminescence stops after about 2–3 minutes because of photobleaching. In a nitrogen atmosphere, the blue shift is absent while photobleaching occurs after much longer times (i.e., 10–15 minutes). These observations are explained by photoinduced oxidation. The CdSe surface is oxidized during illumination in the presence of oxygen. This effectively results in shrinkage of the CdSe core diameter by almost 1 nm and consequently in a blue shift. The faster fading of the luminescence in air suggests that photoinduced oxidation results in the formation of non-radiative recombination centers at the CdSe/CdSeO_x interface. In a nitrogen atmosphere, photoinduced oxidation is prevented by the absence of oxygen. Additionally, a higher initial light output for CdSe/ZnS QDs in air is observed. This can be explained by a fast reduction of the lifetime of the long-lived defect states of CdSe QDs by oxygen.     

Density functional theory study on a fluorescent chemosensor device of aza‐crown ether

Three derivatives of alkyl anthracene covalently bonded to aza‐18‐crown‐6 at the nitrogen position, anthracene(CH₂)_n, (n = 1–3) which act as an on–off fluorogenic photoswitch have been theoretically studied using a computational strategy based on density functional theory at B3LYP/6‐31 + G(d,p) method. The fully optimized geometries have been performed with real frequencies which indicate the minima states. The binding energies, enthalpies and Gibbs free energies have been calculated for aza‐18‐crown‐6 ( L ) and their metal complexes. The natural bond orbital analysis is used to explore the interaction of host–guest molecules. The absorption spectra differences between L and their metal ligands, the excitation energies and absorption wavelength for their excited states have been studied by time‐dependent density functional theory with the basis set 6‐31 + G(d,p). These fluorescent sensors and switchers based on photoinduced electron transfer mechanism have been investigated. The PET process from aza‐crown ether to fluorophore can be suppressed or completely blocked by the entry of alkali metal cations into the aza‐crown ether‐based receptor. Such a suppression of the PET process means that fluorescence intensity is enhanced. The binding selectivity studies of the aza‐crown ether part of L indicate that the presence of the alkali metal cations Li⁺, Na⁺ and K⁺ play an important role in determining the internal charge transfer and the fluorescence properties of the complexes. In addition, the solvent effect has been investigated. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

偶氮材料——乙基橙的光致双折射特性

将偶氮化合物乙基橙样品置于一对正交的偏振片之间，用一束激发光照射该样品，分别测量 在激发光的不同强度和不同偏振方向下探测光的透射功率，研究样品的双折射特性.实验表 明，透射光的饱和值和稳定值与激发光强成正比，且与激发光偏振方向有关，探测光与激发 光振动方向的夹角(θ)为45°时，其值最大；若θ不太小（>10°），sin²2θ 与透射光的饱和值、稳定值成线性关系.同时，利用巴俾涅补偿器对样品的双折射率差进 行了测量，分别得到了绿光激发前后的准确数值为1.11×10^-3和3.57×10 ^-3. 关键词： 偶氮 双折射 测量