Breaking the photoswitch speed limit.
Fiche publication
Date publication
novembre 2023
Journal
Nature communications
Auteurs
Membres identifiés du Cancéropôle Est :
Pr LEHN Jean-Marie
Tous les auteurs :
Thaggard GC, Park KC, Lim J, Maldeni Kankanamalage BKP, Haimerl J, Wilson GR, McBride MK, Forrester KL, Adelson ER, Arnold VS, Wetthasinghe ST, Rassolov VA, Smith MD, Sosnin D, Aprahamian I, Karmakar M, Bag SK, Thakur A, Zhang M, Tang BZ, Castaño JA, Chaur MN, Lerch MM, Fischer RA, Aizenberg J, Herges R, Lehn JM, Shustova NB
Lien Pubmed
Résumé
The forthcoming generation of materials, including artificial muscles, recyclable and healable systems, photochromic heterogeneous catalysts, or tailorable supercapacitors, relies on the fundamental concept of rapid switching between two or more discrete forms in the solid state. Herein, we report a breakthrough in the "speed limit" of photochromic molecules on the example of sterically-demanding spiropyran derivatives through their integration within solvent-free confined space, allowing for engineering of the photoresponsive moiety environment and tailoring their photoisomerization rates. The presented conceptual approach realized through construction of the spiropyran environment results in ~1000 times switching enhancement even in the solid state compared to its behavior in solution, setting a record in the field of photochromic compounds. Moreover, integration of two distinct photochromic moieties in the same framework provided access to a dynamic range of rates as well as complementary switching in the material's optical profile, uncovering a previously inaccessible pathway for interstate rapid photoisomerization.
Référence
Nat Commun. 2023 11 20;14(1):7556