Photophysical Properties of a Terarylene Photoswitch with a Donor-Acceptor Conjugated Bridging Unit.

A terarylene photoswitch composed of an electron-donating thienothiophene unit which is connected to the central bridging imidazole was designed. The electronic and geometrical structures of the central π-conjugation unit was controlled by chemical modifications on the imidazole unit, in which the distribution of frontier molecular orbitals was modulated between the neutral state and its protonated or quaternized cationic forms. These electronic and geometrical changes modulated the mixing of the closely lying excited state potential energy surfaces, resulting in the excitation wavelength dependent photocyclization performance. The chemical modifications on the imidazole ring also had an effect on the fluorescence property in the open-ring forms, which is explained by the formation of different push-pull π-conjugation systems.

Efficient Self-Contained Photoacid Generator System Based on Photochromic Terarylenes.

A series of highly sensitive neutral photoacid generators (PAGs) based on photochromic terarylenes was prepared. Like the example presented herein, these compounds show a subsequent thermal elimination of a Brønsted acid after a light-triggered 6π-electrocyclization, concomitant with the hexatriene aromatization. A novel type of molecular systems was developed, in which one thiazolyl moiety was replaced by a thienyl group. Depending on the solvents and on the nature of the acid source, the quantum yield (QY) for acid generation could reach up to 0.6. Comparative studies on the acid source clearly showed that aromatic leaving groups tend to extinguish the molecular system photoefficiency. A second type was also prepared, in which the nature of the hetero-aromatic rings were identical to our previous example, but their sequence was modified. Therefore, a second level of improvement was achieved in nonpolar solvents, pushing the QY value up to 0.7. Finally, we demonstrated the mesylic acid-releasing PAG as a photocatalyst in a chemically amplified positive resist system.

Photon-Quantitative 6π-Electrocyclization of a Diarylbenzo[b]thiophene in Polar Medium.

The high reactivity of 6π-electrocyclization in polar solvents has remained one of the important challenges for diarylethenes because of the emergence of a twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) state at the excited state in such polar media, which usually quenches the photocyclization reaction. Herein we report on the preparation and highly efficient photocyclization of 2,3-diarylbenzo[b]thiophenes with nonsymmetric side-aryl units in a polar solvent. While the dithiazolylbenzo[b]thiophene showed a suppressed quantum yield of 6π-electrocyclization of 54 % in methanol, the replacement of a thiazole unit with a thiophene ring led to a photon-quantitative 6π-cyclization reaction. The nonsymmetrical modification into the side-aryl units was considered to enhance the CH/π interactions between side-aryl units to support a photoreactive conformation in methanol. The stabilization of the photochromic reactive conformation is expected to suppress the formation of the TICT state at the excited state, leading to highly efficient photoreactivity.

Self-Contained Photoacid Generator Triggered by Photocyclization of Triangle Terarylene Backbone.

We herein propose a new type of efficient neutral photoacid generator. A photoinduced 6π-electrocyclization reaction of photochromic triangle terarylenes triggers subsequent release of a Brønsted acid, which took place from the photocyclized form. A H-atom and its conjugate base were introduced at both sides of a 6π-system to form the self-contained photoacid generator. UV irradiation to the 6π-system produces a cyclohexa-1,3-diene part with a H-atom and a conjugate base on the sp(3) C-atoms at 5- and 6-positions, respectively, which spontaneously release an acid molecule quantitatively forming a polyaromatic compound. A net quantum yield of photoacid generation as high as 0.52 under ambient conditions and a photoinitiated cationic polymerization of an epoxy monomer are demonstrated.

Systematic conversion of single walled carbon nanotubes into n-type thermoelectric materials by molecular dopants.

Thermoelectrics is a challenging issue for modern and future energy conversion and recovery technology. Carbon nanotubes are promising active thermoelectic materials owing to their narrow bandgap energy and high charge carrier mobility, and they can be integrated into flexible thermoelectrics that can recover any waste heat. We here report air-stable n-type single walled carbon nanotubes with a variety of weak electron donors in the range of HOMO level between ca. -4.4 eV and ca. -5.6 eV, in which partial uphill electron injection from the dopant to the conduction band of single walled carbon nanotubes is dominant. We display flexible films of the doped single walled carbon nanotubes possessing significantly large thermoelectric effect, which is applicable to flexible ambient thermoelectric modules.