Rainer Herges

Magnetic Bistability of Molecules in Homogeneous Solution at Room Temperature

A photoresponsive ligand is used to reversibly modulate the magnetic properties of a nickel compound. Magnetic bistability, as manifested in the magnetization of ferromagnetic materials or spin crossover in transition metal complexes, has essentially been restricted to either bulk materials or to very low temperatures. We now present a molecular spin switch that is bistable at room temperature in homogeneous solution. Irradiation of a carefully designed nickel complex with blue-green light (500 nanometers) induces coordination of a tethered pyridine ligand and concomitant electronic rearrangement from a diamagnetic to a paramagnetic state in up to 75% of the ensemble. The process is fully reversible on irradiation with violet-blue light (435 nanometers). No fatigue or degradation is observed after several thousand cycles at room temperature under air. Preliminary data show promise for applications in magnetic resonance imaging.

Synthesis of a Möbius aromatic hydrocarbon.

The defining feature of aromatic hydrocarbon compounds is a cyclic molecular structure stabilized by the delocalization of π electrons that, according to the Hückel rule, need to total 4n + 2 (n = 1,2,…); cyclic compounds with 4n π electrons are antiaromatic and unstable. But in 1964, Heilbronner predicted on purely theoretical grounds that cyclic molecules with the topology of a Möbius band—a ring constructed by joining the ends of a rectangular strip after having given one end half a twist—should be aromatic if they contain 4n, rather than 4n + 2, π electrons. The prediction stimulated attempts to synthesize Möbius aromatic hydrocarbons, but twisted cyclic molecules are destabilized by large ring strains, with the twist also suppressing overlap of the p orbitals involved in electron delocalization and stabilization. In larger cyclic molecules, ring strain is less pronounced but the structures are very flexible and flip back to the less-strained Hückel topology. Although transition-state species, an unstable intermediate and a non-conjugated cyclic molecule, all with a Möbius topology, have been documented, a stable aromatic Möbius system has not yet been realized. Here we report that combining a ‘normal’ aromatic structure (with p orbitals orthogonal to the ring plane) and a ‘belt-like’ aromatic structure (with p orbitals within the ring plane) yields a Möbius compound stabilized by its extended π system.

Highly Efficient Reversible Z−E Photoisomerization of a Bridged Azobenzene with Visible Light through Resolved S1(nπ*) Absorption Bands

The reversible Z-E photoswitching properties of the (Z) and (E) isomers of the severely constrained bridged azobenzene derivative 5,6-dihydrodibenzo[c,g][1,2]diazocine (1) were investigated quantitatively by UV/vis absorption spectroscopy in solution in n-hexane. In contrast to normal azobenzene (AB), 1 has well separated S(1)(n pi*) absorption bands, peaking at lambda(Z) = 404 nm and lambda(E) = 490 nm. Using light at lambda = 385 nm, it was found that 1Z can be switched to 1E with very high efficiency, Gamma = 92 +/- 3%. Conversely, 1E can be switched back to 1Z using light at lambda = 520 nm with approximately 100% yield. The measured quantum yields are Phi(Z-->E) = 72 +/- 4% and Phi(E-->Z) = 50 +/- 10%. The thermal lifetime of the (E) isomer is 4.5 +/- 0.1 h at 28.5 degrees C. The observed photochromic and photoswitching properties of 1 are much more favorable than those for normal AB, making our title compound a promising candidate for interesting applications as a molecular photoswitch especially at low temperatures. The severe constraints by the ethylenic bridge apparently do not hinder but favor the Z-E photoisomerization reactions.

Mounting freestanding molecular functions onto surfaces: the platform approach.

A modular system has been developed to mount molecules upright onto metal surfaces in a well controlled geometry. The approach is based on a reactive platform (triazatriangulenium salt) with an electrophilic center. Functional molecules are attached via C-C bond formation. The distance from the surface can be varied by a spacer, and the distance of the functional units from each other by the size of the platform. Self-assembly of the parent triazaangulenium salt as well as the functionalized platforms on Au(111) surfaces results in stable, hexagonally ordered adlayers.

Photoswitching in two-component surface-mounted metal-organic frameworks: optically triggered release from a molecular container.

The remote control of surface properties is one of the key challenges in interfacial systems chemistry. Here, we report the realization of a SURMOF (surface-mounted metal-organic framework)-based hybrid system in which a crucial component can be switched by light. The realization of this two-component system is made possible by installing vertical compositional gradients via liquid-phase epitaxy. After loading the porous coating with guest molecules, its release is initiated by illumination with visible light and monitored by a quartz crystal microbalance.

Coordination‐Induced Spin Crossover (CISCO) through Axial Bonding of Substituted Pyridines to Nickel–Porphyrins: σ‐Donor versus π‐Acceptor Effects

Nickel-porphyrins, with their rigid quadratic planar coordination framework, provide an excellent model to study the coordination-induced spin crossover (CISCO) effect because bonding of one or two axial ligands to the metal center leads to a spin transition from S=0 to S=1. Herein, both equilibrium constants K(1S) and K(2), and for the first time also the corresponding thermodynamic parameters DeltaH(1S), DeltaH(2), DeltaS(1S), and DeltaS(2), are determined for the reaction of a nickel-porphyrin (Ni-tetrakis(pentafluorophenyl)porphyrin) with different 4-substituted pyridines by temperature-dependent NMR spectroscopy. The association constants K(1S) and K(2) are correlated with the basicity of the 4-substituted pyridines (R: OMe>H>CO(2)Et>NO(2)) whereas the DeltaH(1S) values exhibit a completely different order (OMeCO(2)Et>NO(2)). 4-Nitropyridine exhibits the largest binding enthalpy, which, however, is overcompensated by a large negative binding entropy. We attribute the large association enthalpy of nitropyridine with porphyrin to the back donation of electrons from the Ni d(xz) and d(yz) orbitals into the pi orbitals of pyridine, and the negative association entropy to a decrease in vibrational and internal rotation entropy of the more rigid porphyrin-pyridine complex. Back donation for the nitro- and cyanopyridine complexes is also confirmed by IR spectroscopy, and shows a shift of the N-O and C-N vibrations, respectively, to lower wave numbers. X-ray structures of 2:1 complexes with nitro-, cyano-, and dimethylaminopyridine provide further indication of a back donation. A further trend has been observed: the more basic the pyridine the larger is K(1S) relative to K(2). For nitropyridine K(2) is 17 times larger than K(1S) and in the case of methoxypyridine K(2) and K(1S) are almost equal.

Design of a Neutral Macrocyclic Ionophore, Synthesis and Binding Properties for Nitrate and Bromide Anions

A macrocyclic neutral ionophore 8 (X = O) capable of binding weakly coordinating anions such as nitrate and bromide in DMSO solution has been designed by a stepwise, deductive approach. The optimum geometrical arrangement of the hydrogen bond donor sites in the target ionophore was determined by DFT calculations. From these data, a suitable macrocyclic molecular framework was constructed. The 24-membered macrocyclic ionophore was synthesized by standard macrocyclization methods. NMR titrations revealed molecular complexes with defined 1:1 stoichiometries in DMSO for 8 (X = O) with nitrate, hydrogensulfate, acetate, cyanide, iodide, and bromide ions, while dihydrogenphosphate, sulfate, and chloride ions yielded aggregates of higher stoichiometry. The nitrate binding constants of 8 (X = O) are substantial for a neutral ionophore with defined binding sites in pure DMSO solution. Bromide ions, which have a similar ion radius, are bound with an even higher affinity. Chloride is obviously too small, and iodine too large, to form 1:1 complexes. The binding motif of 8 (X = O) was compared with related molecules of similar structure, such as 8 (X = S) and 19. As predicted from calculations, the small structural variations give rise to a complete loss of nitrate and bromide ion binding ability in DMSO. This sensitivity to geometrical changes and the affinity of 8 (X = O) to nitrate and bromide ions, which are poor hydrogen bond acceptors, confirm the predicted complementarity of ionophore binding site and anion geometry. According to DFT and MD calculations the higher affinity of 8 (X = O) to bromide than to nitrate is mainly due to the greater flexibility of the bromide complex and thus to its higher entropy. (© Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2002)

The existence of secondary orbital interactions

B3LYP/6‐311+G** (and MP2/6‐311+G**) computations, performed for a series of Diels‐Alder (DA) reactions, confirm that the endo transition states (TS) and the related Cope‐TSs are favored energetically over the respective exo‐TSs. Likewise, the computed magnetic properties (nucleus‐independent chemical shifts and magnetic susceptibililties) of the endo‐ (as well as the Cope) TSs reveal their greater electron delocalization and greater aromaticity than the exo‐TSs. However, Woodward and Hoffmanns original example is an exception: their endo‐TS model, involving the DA reaction of a syn‐ with an anti‐butadiene (BD), actually is disfavored energetically over the corresponding exo‐TS; magnetic criteria also do not indicate the existence of SOI delocalization in either case. Instead, a strong energetic preference for endo‐TSs due to SOI is found when both BDs are in the syn conformations. This is in accord with Alder and Steins rule of “maximum accumulation of double bonds:” both the dienophile and the diene should have syn conformations. Plots along the IRCs show that the magnetic properties typically are most strongly exalted close to the energetic TS. Because of SOI, all the points along the endo reaction coordinates are more diatropic than along the corresponding exo pathways. We find weak SOI effects to be operative in the endo‐TSs involved in the cycloadditions of cyclic alkenes, cyclopropene, aziridine, cyclobutene, and cyclopentene, with cyclopentadiene. While the endo‐TSs are only slightly lower in energy than the respective exo‐TSs, the magnetic properties of the endo‐TSs are significantly exalted over those for the exo‐TSs and the Natural Bond Orbitals indicate small stabilizing interactions between the methylene cycloalkene hydrogen orbitals (and lone pairs in case of aziridine) with π‐character and the diene π MOs.

Photoswitching Behavior of Azobenzene-Containing Alkanethiol Self-Assembled Monolayers on Au Surfaces

The photoisomerization of self-assembled monolayers of azobenzene-containing alkanethiols, as well as of mixed monolayers of these substances with n-alkanethiol spacer molecules on Au surfaces, was studied by photoelectrochemical measurements and surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy. A strong dependence on the molecular structure of the adsorbates was found, specifically on the linker between the azobenzene moiety and the alkanethiol: while molecules with an amide group were photoinactive, those with an ether group exhibited pronounced, reversible photoisomerization in pure and mixed adlayers. Both trans-cis and cis-trans isomerization followed first-order kinetics with time constants that suggest high quantum efficiencies for these processes.

Photoswitchable Magnetic Resonance Imaging Contrast by Improved Light-Driven Coordination-Induced Spin State Switch

We present a fully reversible and highly efficient on-off photoswitching of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast with green (500 nm) and violet-blue (435 nm) light. The contrast change is based on intramolecular light-driven coordination-induced spin state switch (LD-CISSS), performed with azopyridine-substituted Ni-porphyrins. The relaxation time of the solvent protons in 3 mM solutions of the azoporphyrins in DMSO was switched between 3.5 and 1.7 s. The relaxivity of the contrast agent changes by a factor of 6.7. No fatigue or side reaction was observed, even after >100,000 switching cycles in air at room temperature. Electron-donating substituents at the pyridine improve the LD-CISSS in two ways: better photostationary states are achieved, and intramolecular binding is enhanced.