A heteroleptic bis(tridentate) ruthenium(II) platform featuring an anionic 1,2,3-triazolate-based ligand for application in the dye-sensitized solar cell.

A series of bis(tridentate) ruthenium(II) complexes featuring new anionic 1,2,3-triazolate-based tridentate ligands and 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine is presented. For a complex equipped with carboxy anchoring groups, the performance in a dye-sensitized solar cell is evaluated. The title complexes are readily synthesized and can be decorated with alkyl chains utilizing azide-alkyne cycloaddition methods, in order to improve the device stability and allow the use of alternative electrolytes. On account of the strong electron donation from the 1,2,3-triazolates, the complexes exhibit a broad metal-to-ligand charge-transfer absorption (up to 700 nm), leading to an electron transfer toward the anchoring ligand. The lifetimes of the charge-separated excited states are in the range of 50 to 80 ns. In addition, the ground- and excited-state redox potentials are appropriate for the application in dye-sensitized solar cells, as demonstrated by power conversion efficiencies of up to 4.9% (vs 6.1% for N749).

Physicochemical analysis of ruthenium(II) sensitizers of 1,2,3-triazole-derived mesoionic carbene and cyclometalating ligands.

A series of heteroleptic bis(tridentate) ruthenium(II) complexes bearing ligands featuring 1,2,3-triazolide and 1,2,3-triazolylidene units are presented. The synthesis of the C^N^N-coordinated ruthenium(II) triazolide complex is achieved by direct C-H activation, which is enabled by the use of a 1,5-disubstituted triazole. By postcomplexation alkylation, the ruthenium(II) 1,2,3-triazolide complex can be converted to the corresponding 1,2,3-triazolylidene complex. Additionally, a ruthenium(II) complex featuring a C^N^C-coordinating bis(1,2,3-triazolylidene)pyridine ligand is prepared via transmetalation from a silver(I) triazolylidene precursor. The electronic consequences of the carbanion and mesoionic carbene donors are studied both experimentally and computationally. The presented complexes exhibit a broad absorption in the visible region as well as long lifetimes of the charge-separated excited state suggesting their application in photoredox catalysis and photovoltaics. Testing of the dyes in a conventional dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) generates, however, only modest power conversion efficiencies (PCEs).

Near-IR photoresponse of ruthenium dipyrrinate terpyridine sensitizers in the dye-sensitized solar cells.

Coordination of bidentate 5-pentafluorophenyldipyrrinate (pfpdp) or 5-(2-thienyl)dipyrrinate (2-tdp) to a Ru(II) center bearing 2,2':6',2″-terpyridine-4,4',4″-tricarboxylate (tctpy) and a NCS(-) ligand results in strongly light-absorbing complexes [Ru(tctpy)(L)(NCS)] (L = pfpdp or 2-tdp). Anchored to a mesoporous TiO2 electrode, these complexes afford a photoaction spectral response at wavelengths of up to 950 nm, one of the most red-shifted values reported to date for molecular dyes in the dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC).

Stabilization of ruthenium sensitizers to TiO2 surfaces through cooperative anchoring groups.

Cooperative binding of a bis(tridentate) ruthenium(II) complex to a TiO(2) surface through carboxylate and phosphonate groups is demonstrated to be an effective method for achieving a robust anchoring motif in aqueous media while maintaining charge transfer from the dye into the semiconductor. The realization of these complementary goals has broad implications for solar cells and (photo)electrocatalytic schemes.

Cyclometalated ruthenium(II) complexes featuring tridentate click-derived ligands for dye-sensitized solar cell applications.

A series of heteroleptic bis(tridentate) Ru(II) complexes featuring N^C^N-cyclometalating ligands is presented. The 1,2,3-triazole-containing tridentate ligands are readily functionalized with hydrophobic side chains by means of click chemistry and the corresponding cyclometalated Ru(II) complexes are easily synthesized. The performance of these thiocyanate-free complexes in a dye-sensitized solar cell was tested and a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of up to 4.0 % (Jsc =8.1 mA cm(-2) , Voc =0.66 V, FF=0.70) was achieved, while the black dye ((NBu4 )3 [Ru(Htctpy)(NCS)3 ]; Htctpy=2,2':6',2''-terpyridine-4'-carboxylic acid-4,4''-dicarboxylate) showed 5.2 % (Jsc =10.7 mA cm(-2) , Voc =0.69 V, FF=0.69) under comparable conditions. When co-adsorbed with chenodeoxycholic acid, the PCE of the best cyclometalated dye could be improved to 4.5 % (Jsc =9.4 mA cm(-2) , Voc =0.65 V, FF=0.70). The PCEs correlate well with the light-harvesting capabilities of the dyes, while a comparable incident photon-to-current efficiency was achieved with the cyclometalated dye and the black dye. Regeneration appeared to be efficient in the parent dye, despite the high energy of the highest occupied molecular orbital. The device performance was investigated in more detail by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Ultimately, a promising Ru(II) sensitizer platform is presented that features a highly functionalizable "click"-derived cyclometalating ligand.

Bis(tridentate) ruthenium-terpyridine complexes featuring microsecond excited-state lifetimes.

A series of heteroleptic bis(tridentate) ruthenium(II) complexes, each bearing a substituted 2,2':6',2″-terpyridine (terpy) ligand, is characterized by room temperature microsecond excited-state lifetimes. This observation is a consequence of the strongly σ-donating and weakly π-accepting tridentate carbene ligand, 2',6'-bis(1-mesityl-3-methyl-1,2,3-triazol-4-yl-5-idene)pyridine (C^N^C), adjacent to the terpy maintaining a large separation between the ligand field and metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) states while also preserving a large (3)MLCT energy. The observed lifetimes are the highest documented lifetimes for unimolecular ruthenium(II) complexes and are four orders in magnitude higher than that associated with [Ru(terpy)(2)](2+).

Systematic modulation of a bichromic cyclometalated ruthenium(II) scaffold bearing a redox-active triphenylamine constituent.

The syntheses and physicochemical properties of nine bis-tridentate ruthenium(II) complexes containing one cyclometalating ligand furnished with terminal triphenylamine (TPA) substituents are reported. The structure of each complex conforms to a molecular scaffold formulated as [Ru(II)(TPA-2,5-thiophene-pbpy)(Me(3)tctpy)] (pbpy = 6-phenyl-2,2'-bipyridine; Me(3)tctpy = trimethyl-4,4',4''-tricarboxylate-2,2':6',2''-terpyridine), where various electron-donating groups (EDGs) and electron-withdrawing groups (EWGs) are installed about the TPA unit and the anionic ring of the pbpy ligand. It is found that the redox chemistry of the Ru center and the TPA unit can be independently modulated by (i) placing EWGs (e.g., -CF(3)) or EDGs (e.g., -OMe) on the anionic ring of the pbpy ligand (substituted sites denoted as R(2) or R(3)) and/or (ii) installing electron-donating substituents (e.g., -H, -Me, -OMe) para to the amine of the TPA group (i.e., R(1)). The first oxidation potential is localized to the TPA unit when, for example, EDGs are placed at R(1) with EWGs at R(2) (e.g., the TPA(•+)/TPA(0) and Ru(III)/Ru(II) redox couples appear at +0.98 and +1.27 V vs NHE, respectively, when R(1) = -OMe and R(2) = -CF(3)). This situation is reversed when R(3) = EDG and R(1) = -H: TPA-based and metal-centered oxidation waves occur at +1.20 and +1.11 V vs NHE, respectively. The UV-vis spectrum for each complex is broad (e.g., absorption bands are extended from the UV region to beyond 800 nm in all cases) and intense (e.g., ε ∼ 10(4) M(-1)·cm(-1)) because of the overlapping intraligand charge-transfer and metal-to-ligand charge-transfer transitions. The information derived from this study offers guiding principles for modulating the physicochemical properties of bichromic cyclometalated ruthenium(II) complexes.