Dagmar Klein

On the photophysics of polyenes. 1. Bathochromic shifts in their 1Ag --> 1Bu electronic transitions caused by the polarizability of the medium.

As shown in this study, the solvatochromic behavior of polyenes depends exclusively on the polarizability of the medium and, even more interestingly, their solvatochromism increases markedly with increasing length of the polyene chain. By virtue of the electronic nature of the interaction of polyenes with the medium, their solvatochromic response to a polarizability change is instantaneous, making these compounds extremely effective polarizability probes for molecular environments. The extreme sensitivity of polyenes to the polarizability of their environment is consistent with the fact that changes in molecular architecture such as those occurring in photosynthetic systems can give rise to polarizability gradients resulting in red shifts in the 1Ag --> 1Bu transition, thereby opening up new channels directing the energy transfer involved to energy trapping sites in such systems.

A General Route to Fully Terminally tert‐Butylated Linear Polyenes

Starting from the readily available α,β-unsaturated ketone, 3-tert-butyl-4,4-dimethyl-2-pentenal, higher vinylogues, and fully terminally tert-butylated polyolefins with up to 13 consecutive conjugated double bonds have been prepared by either McMurry dimerization or Wittig chain-elongation routes. The highly unsaturated conjugated π systems, which show a remarkable stability, have been characterized by spectroscopic methods and, in many cases, by X-ray structural analysis. The yields are high enough to allow for thorough chemical reactivity studies.

Photoelectron spectra and electronic structures of highly substituted polyenes

The electronic structures of the a,a,w,w-tetra-t-Bu substituted conjugated polyenes have been investigated by UPS and quantum chem. calcns. The all-trans-hexatriene (1), octatetraene (2), decapentaene (3), and the tetradecaheptaene (4) have essentially planar polyene chromophores and accordingly their p MOs are spread by about 3-5 eV. On the other hand, interaction of the double bonds is limited in the moderately twisted 1,1,6,6-tetra-tert-butyl-cis-hexatriene (5) and the highly distorted cis-1,1,6,6-tetra-tert-butyl-3,4-dimethylhexatriene (6). The first UV-Vis absorption of a,a,w,w-tetra-t-butyl-polyenes with three to thirteen conjugated C=C double bonds is linearly correlated with the PM3 calcd. HOMO-LUMO energy gap.

The photophysics of all-trans polyenes from ttbP5, a nonphotolabile pentaene.

The all-trans pentaene, 3,12-di(tert-butyl)-2,2,13,13-tetramethyl-3,5,7,9,11-tetradecapentaene (ttbP5) fluoresces in two different regions of the visible spectrum. It produces an extremely weak emission in the gas phase that can also be detected in the condensed phase; such an emission exhibits a negligible Stokes shift with respect to the 1Ag-->1Bu absorption transition and can in principle be assigned to the 1Bu-->1Ag emission of the compound. ttbP5 also exhibits a second fluorescence emission at approximately 520 nm in both the gas phase and the condensed phase. The emission in the condensed phase increases in strength and structure, with no change in spectral position, as the solvent viscosity increases by effect of the solution temperature being lowered. The spectral behavior of this pentaene (ttbP5) is different enough from that reported [J. Catalan et al., J. Chem. Phys. 128, 104504 (2008)] for its tetraene counterpart (ttbP4) to warrant a separate analysis in order to facilitate a better understanding of the way the photophysics of these polyenes changes as their chain is lengthened.

The chemical behavior of terminally tert-butylated polyolefins

Summary The chemical behavior of various oligoenes 2 has been studied. The catalytic hydrogenation of diene 3 yielded monoene 4. Triene 7 was hydrogenated to diene 8, monoene 9 and saturated hydrocarbon 10. Bromine addition to 3 and 7 yielded the dibromides 17 and 18, respectively, i.e., the oligoene system has been attacked at its terminal olefinic carbon atoms. Analogously, the higher vinylogs 19 and 20 yielded the 1,8- and 1,10-bromine adduts 23 and 24, respectively, when less than 1 equivalent of bromine was employed. Treatment of tetraene 19 with excess bromine provided tetrabromide 25. In epoxidation reactions, both with meta-chloroperbenzoic acid (MCPBA) and dimethyldioxirane (DMDO) two model oligoenes were studied: triene 7 and tetraene 19. Whereas 7 furnished the rearrangement product 31 with MCPBA, it yielded the symmetrical epoxide 32 with DMDO. Analogously, 19 was converted to mono-epoxide 33 with MCPBA and to 34 with DMDO. Diels–Alder addition of 7 with N-phenyltriazolinedione (PTAD) did not take place. Extension of the conjugated π-system to the next higher vinylog, 19, caused NPTD-addition to the symmetrical adduct 37 in good yield. Comparable results were observed on adding NPTD (equivalent amount) to pentaene 20 and hexaene 21. Using 36 in excess provided the 2:1-adduct 40 from 21 and led to a complex mixture of adducts from heptaene 22. With tetracyanoethylene (TCNE) as the dienophile, tetraolefin 19 yielded the symmetrical adduct 43, although the reaction temperature had to be increased. Pentaene 20 and hexaene 21 led to corresponding results, adducts 44 and 45 being produced in acceptable yields. With nonaene 42 and TCNE the 2:1-adduct 48 was generated according to its spectroscopic data. Exploratory photochemical studies were carried out with tetraene 19 as the model compound. On irradiation this reacted with oxygen to the stable endo-peroxide 52.