Improving photosensitivity without changing thermal reactivity in photochromic diarylbenzenes based on accurate prediction by DFT calculations

• Published in: Photochemical & photobiological sciences Vol. 19; no. 5; pp. 644 - 653
• Main Authors: Kitagawa, Daichi, Takahashi, Naoko, Nakahama, Tatsumoto, Kobatake, Seiya
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 01.05.2020; Springer Nature; Royal Society of Chemistry
• Subjects: Absorption; Absorptivity; Biochemistry; Biochemistry & Molecular Biology; Biomaterials; Biophysics; Chemistry; Chemistry, Physical; Density functional theory; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; Mathematical analysis; Optical properties; Photochromism; Photosensitivity; Physical Chemistry; Physical Sciences; Plant Sciences; Quantum chemistry; Science & Technology; Switches; Thermal properties; Thermodynamic properties; DENSITY FUNCTIONALS; MOLECULAR DESIGN; THERMOCHEMICAL KINETICS; STRATEGY; SYSTEMS; DIARYLETHENES; IMIDAZOLYL RADICAL COMPLEXES; INTENSE COLORATION
• ISSN: 1474-905X; 1474-9092; 1474-9092
• DOI: 10.1039/d0pp00024h

1,2-Diarylbenzenes (DABs) have been developed as a new family of fast T-type photochromic switches. However, the molecular design strategy for DABs with desired optical and thermal properties is not established. In this work, we explored the best functional in quantum chemical calculations to predict the properties of DABs. Furthermore, we newly designed and synthesized DABs based on the calculation using the best functional, resulting in the improvement of the photosensitivity in the UV-A region ( i.e. a shift of absorption to lower energies and an increase in the absorption coefficient) without changing the thermal back-reaction rate. The best functional to predict the optical and thermal properties of DABs in DFT calculations was elucidated.