Search results for "Photoisomerization"

Time-Resolved Photochemistry of Stiffened Stilbenes

2019

Broadband transient absorption spectroscopy is used to study the photoisomerization of stiffened stilbenes in solution, specifically E/ Z mixtures of bis(benzocyclobutylidene) (t4, c4) and ( E)-1-(2,2-dimethyltetralinylidene)-2-2-dimethyltetraline (t6). Upon excitation to S

Excited-state non-radiative decay in stilbenoid compounds: An: Ab initio quantum-chemistry study on size and substituent effects

2019

In the framework of optoelectronic luminescent materials, non-radiative decay mechanisms are relevant to interpret efficiency losses. These radiationless processes are herein studied theoretically for a series of stilbenoid derivatives, including distyrylbenzene (DSB) and cyano-substituted distyrylbenzene (DCS) molecules in vacuo. Given the difficulties of excited-state reaction path determinations, a simplified computational strategy is defined based on the exploration of the potential energy surfaces (PES) along the elongation, twisting, and pyramidalization of the vinyl bonds. For such exploration, density functional theory (DFT), time-dependent (TD)DFT, and complete-active-space self-co…

Photoresponsive Halogen-Bonded Liquid Crystals: The Role of Aromatic Fluorine Substitution

2019

A new strategy for controlling the liquid crystalline and photophysical properties of supramolecular mesogens assembled via halogen bonding is reported. Changing the degree of fluorination at the halogen-bond donor of the supramolecular liquid crystal allows for the fine-tuning of the halogen bond strength and thereby provides control over the temperature range of the mesophase. At least three fluorine atoms have to be present to ensure efficient polarization of the halogen-bond donor and the formation of a mesophase. In addition, it was found that stilbazole acceptors are superior to their azopyridine counterparts in promoting stable liquid crystalline phases. The halogen-bond-driven supra…

Photo-switching in a hybrid material made of magnetic layered double hydroxides intercalated with azobenzene molecules.

2014

Financial support from the EU (Projects HINTS FP7-263104-2 and SpinMol Advanced Grant ERC-2009-AdG-20090325), the Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad (Projects with FEDER cofinancing MAT 2009-14528-C02-01, MAT2011-22785, MAT2012-38567-C02-01, CTQ-2011-26507, Consolider-Ingenio in Molecular Nanoscience CSD2007-00010, Consolider-Ingenio 2010-Multicat CSD2009-00050, and Severo Ochoa Program SEV-2012-0267), Generalitat Valenciana (PROMETEO and ISIC-Nano programs), and VLC/Campus Microcluster "Functional Nanomaterials and Nanodevices" is gratefully acknowledged. C. M. G. thanks the Spanish MINECO for a Ramon y Cajal Fellowship (RYC-2012-10894). We also acknowledge P. Atienzar and J. …

A New Opto-dielectric Effect Based on the Photoisomerization of Azo Compounds in Ferroelectric Liquid Crystals

1995

Reversible Modulation of Elasticity in Fluoroazobenzene-Containing Hydrogels Using Green and Blue Light.

2017

Hydrogels are soft materials that have found multiple applications in biomedicine and represent a good platform for the introduction of molecular switches and synthetic machines into macromolecular networks. Tuning their mechanical properties reversibly with light is appealing for a variety of advanced applications and has been demonstrated in the past; however, their activation typically requires the use of UV light, which displays several drawbacks related to its damaging character and limited penetration in tissues and materials. This study circumvents this limitation by introducing all-visible ortho-fluoroazobenzene switches into a hydrophilic network, which, as a result, can be activat…

Spin Crossover Metal-Organic Frameworks with Inserted Photoactive Guests: On the Quest to Control the Spin State by Photoisomerization

2021

International audience; Three Hofmann-like metal-organic frameworks {Fe(bpac)[Pt(CN)4]}•G (bpac=1,2-bis(4-pyridyl)acetylene) were synthesized with photoisomerizable guest molecules (G = trans-azobenzene, trans-stilbene or cis-stilbene) and were characterized by elemental analysis, thermogravimetry and powder X-ray diffraction. The insertion of guest molecules and their conformation were inferred from Raman and FTIR spectra and from single-crystal X-ray diffraction and confronted with computational simulation. The magnetic and photomagnetic behaviors of the framework are significantly altered by the different guest molecules and different conformations. On the other hand, photoisomerization …

UV‐Vis Spectroscopy Reveals a Correlation Between Y263 and BV Protonation States in Bacteriophytochromes

2019

Red-light photosensory proteins, phytochromes, link light activation to biological functions by interconverting between two conformational states. For this, they undergo large-scale secondary and tertiary changes which follow small-scale Z to E bond photoisomerization of the covalently bound bilin chromophore. The complex network of amino acid interactions in the chromophore-binding pocket plays a central role in this process. Highly conserved Y263 and H290 have been found to be important for the photoconversion yield, while H260 has been identified as important for bilin protonation and proton transfer steps. Here, we focus on the roles these amino acids are playing in preserving the chemi…

Origins of fluorescence in evolved bacteriophytochromes

2014

Use of fluorescent proteins to study in vivo processes in mammals requires near-infrared (NIR) biomarkers that exploit the ability of light in this range to penetrate tissue. Bacteriophytochromes (BphPs) are photoreceptors that couple absorbance of NIR light to photoisomerization, protein conformational changes, and signal transduction. BphPs have been engineered to form NIR fluorophores, including IFP1.4, Wi-Phy, and the iRFP series, initially by replacement of Asp-207 by His. This position was suggestive because its main chain carbonyl is within hydrogen-bonding distance to pyrrole ring nitrogens of the biliverdin chromophore, thus potentially functioning as a crucial transient proton sin…

Electrostatic control of the photoisomerization efficiency and optical properties in visual pigments: on the role of counterion quenching.

2009

Hybrid QM(CASPT2//CASSCF/6-31G*)/MM(Amber) computations have been used to map the photoisomerization path of the retinal chromophore in Rhodopsin and explore the reasons behind the photoactivity efficiency and spectral control in the visual pigments. It is shown that while the electrostatic environment plays a central role in properly tuning the optical properties of the chromophore, it is also critical in biasing the ultrafast photochemical event: it controls the slope of the photoisomerization channel as well as the accessibility of the S(1)/S(0) crossing space triggering the ultrafast decay. The roles of the E113 counterion, the E181 residue, and the other amino acids of the protein pock…