Structure/reactivity/photoinitiation ability relationships in novel benzo pyrazolo (or imidazo) isoquinolinone derivatives upon visible light LEDs

Isoquinolinone derivatives bearing amino‐ or nitro‐ substituent (IQNs) have been synthesized as photoinitiators and combined with various additives (i.e., iodonium salt, N‐vinylcarbazole, amine or 2,4,6‐tris(trichloromethyl)?1,3,5‐triazine) to initiate ring‐opening cationic polymerizations (CP) or free radical polymerizations under exposure to visible LEDs (e.g., LEDs at 405 nm or 455 nm, or cold white LED) or a halogen lamp. Compared to the well‐known camphorquinone‐based systems, the novel IQNs‐based combinations employed here demonstrate higher efficiencies for the CP of epoxides. The photochemically generated reactive species (i.e., cations and radicals) from the IQNs‐based systems have been investigated by steady state photolysis, cyclic voltammetry, fluorescence, laser flash photolysis, and electron spin resonance spin trapping techniques. The structure/reactivity/photoinitiating ability relationships of IQNs‐based combinations are also discussed; the crucial role of the excited state lifetimes of the photoinitiators to ensure efficient quenching by additives is clearly underlined. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015 , 53, 1806–1815