Conjugated Carbazole-Based Schiff Bases as Photoinitiators: From Facile Synthesis to Efficient Two-Photon Polymerization

Exploration of simple and economical synthetic routes to construct active two-photon initiators (2PIs) with long conjugation length is highly desirable to promote the development of two-photon-induced photopolymerization technology. In this article, several conjugated carbazole-based derivatives containing N=C bonds as π bridges and electron donor/acceptor groups were prepared through one-step Schiff base reaction. The structure–activity relationship was systematically investigated through calculations and experimental tests. The results showed that compared to the D-π-D-π-D molecules, the A-π-D-π-A molecules exhibited stronger charge transfer, which induce redshifted linear absorption and enhanced two-photon absorption at 800 nm. The 2PIs displayed aggregation-induced emission property and show potential for the fabrication of luminescent microdevices. In two-photon-induced microfabrication tests, the formulations containing novel 2PIs exhibited lower threshold energy than the widely used commercial photoinitiator Irgacure 369 and the two-photon resists IP-L is the brand name of the two-photon resist from Nanoscribe, specially designed for nanoscribe's laser lithography systems. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018 , 56, 2692–2700     

Two-photon absorption properties of two-dimensional π-conjugated chromophores: combined experimental and theoretical study

The two-photon absorption (TPA) properties of four TPEB [tetrakis(phenylethynyl)benzene] derivatives (TD, para, ortho, and meta) with different donor/acceptor substitution patterns have been investigated experimentally by the femtosecond open-aperture Z-scan method and theoretically by the time-dependent density-functional theory (TDDFT) method. The four compounds show relatively large TPA cross sections, and the all-donor substituted species (TD) displays the largest TPA cross-section σ(2) = 520 ± 30 GM. On the basis of the calculated electronic structure, TD shows no TPA band in the lower energy region of the spectrum because the transition density is concentrated on particular transitions due to the high symmetry of the molecular structure. The centrosymmetric donor-acceptor TPEB para shows excitations resulting from transitions centered on D-π-D and A-π-A moieties, as well as transition between the D-π-D and A-π-A moieties; this accounts for the broad nature of the TPA bands for this compound. Calculations for two noncentrosymmetric TPEBs (ortho and meta) reveal that the diminished TPA intensities of higher-energy bands result from destructive interference between the dipolar and three-state terms. The molecular orbitals (MOs) of the TPEBs are derivable with linear combinations of the MOs of the two crossing BPEB [bis(phenylethynyl)benzene] derivatives. Overall, the characteristics of the experimental spectra are well-described based on the theoretical analysis.     

Fluorene as the π-spacer for new two-photon absorption chromophores

We report herein the design and synthesis of two new quadrupolar D-π-A-π-D chromophores containing diphenyl amine and dicyanobenzene or 2,1,3-benzothiadiazole as electron donor (D) and acceptor (A), respectively, which are bridged by fluorene linkage (π). The introduction of coplanar fluorenes is highly beneficial for the enhancement of two-photon absorption (TPA), where 1b displays a TPA cross section (σ₂) of up to 1975±207 GM.     

Extended Alkenyl and Alkynyl Benzotriazoles with Enhanced Two-Photon Absorption Properties as a Promising Alternative to Benzothiadiazoles

A series of donor–π–acceptor–π–donor (D -π-A-π-D) benzoazole dyes with 2H-benzo[d][1,2,3]triazole or BTD cores have been prepared and their photophysical properties characterized. The properties of these compounds display remarkable differences, mainly as a result of the electron-donor substituent. Dyes with the best properties have visible-light absorption over λ=400 nm, large Stokes shifts in the range of about 3500–6400 cm⁻¹, and good fluorescence emission with quantum yields of up to 0.78. The two-photon absorption properties were also studied to establish the relationship between structure and properties in the different compounds synthesized. These results provided cross sections of up to 1500 GM, with a predominance of S₂←S₀ transitions and a high charge-transfer character. Time-dependent DFT calculations supported the experimental results.     

Rational design of small indolic squaraine dyes with large two-photon absorption cross section

Small organic dyes with large two-photon absorption (TPA) cross sections (δ) are more desirable in many applications compared with large molecules. Herein, we proposed a facile theoretical method for the fast screening of small organic molecules as potential TPA dyes. This method is based on a theoretical analysis to the natural transition orbitals (NTOs) directly associated with the TPA transition. Experimental results on the small indolic squaraine dyes (ISD) confirmed that their TPA cross sections is strongly correlated to the delocalization degree of the NTOs of the S₂ excited states. Aided by this simple and intuitive method, we have successfully designed and synthesized a small indolic squaraine dye (ISD) with a remarkable δ value above 8000 GM at 780 nm. The ISD dye also exhibits a high singlet oxygen generation quantum yield about 0.90. The rationally designed TPA dye was successfully applied in both two-photon excited fluorescence cell imaging and in vivo cerebrovascular blood fluid tracing.     

Two photon absorption of extended substituted phenylenevinylene oligomers: A TDDFT study

Time dependent density functional theory has been applied to analyze the effect of substituent groups on one-photon (OPA) and two-photon (TPA) absorption properties of extended amine-terminated phenylenevinylene oligomers. All investigated molecules are characterized by increased TPA activity. Calculated TPA cross-sections for these compounds do not show TPA enhancements observed in experimental measurements. Stabilization of the TPA active excited state in these chromophores leads to the small (0.2 eV) energy separation between the OPA and TPA allowed excited states, which agrees well with experimental data and may lead to the enhancement of the TPA response due to the strong vibronic couplings.     

Photophysical properties of octupolar chromophore based on triazine core and fluorene divinylene conjugated bridge

A novel octupolar chromophore with 1,3,5-triazine as core,2,7-divinylene-9,9-dimethylfluorene as extendedπ-conjugated bridge,triarylamine as the electron-donating end-groups was successfully synthesized and characterized.Their linear photophysical and two-photon absorption(TPA) properties were investigated by UV absorption,excited fluorescence(SPEF) spectra and nonlinear transmission method,respectively.The absorption cut-off of the chromophore is below 520 nm and it has stronger fluorescence emission in a nonpolar solvent.In addition,the chromophore exhibits larger TPA cross-section(226.0 GM) in the femtosecond regime at 800 nm.     

Effect of alicyclic ring size on the photophysical and photochemical properties of bis(arylidene)cycloalkanone compounds

A series of bis(arylidene)cycloalkanone compounds based on cyclobutanone, cyclopentanone, cyclohexanone and cycloheptanone, C4-C7, respectively, with a D-π-A-π-D structure containing the same donor and acceptor but different alicyclic rings was prepared. The effects of alicyclic ring size on the photophysical, photochemical and electrochemical properties of these compounds were investigated systematically. We found that an increase of the number of carbons in the central alicyclic ring leads to changes in geometry, which has significant effects on the conjugation, and photophysical and photochemical properties. These effects include decreases in the fluorescence quantum yield, transient lifetimes, peak extinction coefficients, and the singlet oxygen quantum yield with the increase of the ring size. The one-photon absorption spectra, the two-photon absorption (2PA) spectra, and the fluorescence spectra all show a hypsochromic shift with increasing ring size. The results of this study provide guidance for the design of new cycloketone-based D-π-A-π-D 2PA compounds for photopolymerization and photodynamic therapy applications.     

Theoretical study of two-photon absorption properties of a series of ferrocene-based chromophores

The electronic structures, one-photon absorption (OPA), and two-photon absorption (TPA) properties of a series of ferrocene-based chromophores with TCF-type acceptors (TCF = 2-dicyanomethylene-3-cyano-4-methyl-2,5-dihydrofuran) have been studied by using the ZINDO-SOS method. The results have revealed that OPA and TPA of ferrocenyl derivatives are affected by the strength of the acceptor, especially the pi-bridge conjugation length. The TPA cross section increases with increasing acceptor strength and pi-bridge conjugation length. The TCF-type acceptor with a phenyl group can lead to a larger TPA cross section. Quadrupole molecules have the largest TPA cross sections (2000-3000 GM), which are about 4 times that of the corresponding dipolar molecules, indicating larger interactions between the top and bottom branches. Finally, the origins of the two-photon excitations for ferrocenyl derivatives are analyzed. The calculations show that ferrocenyl derivatives with TCF-type acceptors (especially quadrupole molecules) are promising candidates for TPA materials.     

A critical theoretical study on the two-photon absorption properties of some selective triaryl borane-1-naphthylphenyl amine based charge transfer molecules

In the present work, we have studied the two-photon absorption (TPA) properties of some selective molecules containing triarylborane and 1-naphthylphenylamine as the acceptor and donor moiety, respectively. The calculations are performed by using the state-of-the-art linear and quadratic response theory in the framework of the time dependent density functional theoretical method. The TPA parameters are calculated with CAMB3LYP functional and the cc-pVDZ basis set. The one-photon results indicate that both the electronic transitions (S(0)-S(1) and S(0)-S(2)) are associated with the charge transfer interaction between the donor and acceptor moieties along with the reorganization of the π-electron density. All these chromophores are found to have very strong two-photon active modes. In order to find out the origin of large TP transition probability of these molecules, we have performed two-state model (TSM) and sum-over-states (SOS) calculations. We have found that the TSM failed to reproduce the correct trend of the TP transition probability of the molecules obtained from the response theory, while SOS is quite successful in doing so. The whole study indicates that the transition moments between the excited states play a pivotal role in controlling the TP transition probabilities of these molecules. The role of solvent in the TP transition probability of these molecules has meticulously been scrutinized within the polarized continuum model (PCM). Further more, we have benchmarked our theoretical findings by calculating the TPA cross-section of a boron and nitrogen containing a charge transfer molecule for which the experimental result is available and we found that our theoretical result is in good agreement with the experimental one which definitely demonstrates the potential of all these light-emitting diode molecules as TP active materials too.     

Measurement of strong nonlinear absorption in stilbene-chloroform solutions,explained by the superposition of two-photon absorption and one-photon absorption from the excited state

A strong nonlinear absorption is measured when ruby laser light passes through a solution of stilbene in chloroform. The experimental results are interpreted by the use of the following model: two-photon absorption (TPA) is followed by one-photon absorption (OPA) by the excited molecules. The solution of the corresponding system of rate equations and fitting of parameters to the experimental curve give the TPA cross section σ⁽²⁾ = 8 × 10^?49 cm⁴ sec/photon and the product σ⁽¹⁾ τ₁₀ = 3 × 10^?26 cm² sec. Measurements at other frequencies are in agreement with this model.     

Calculations of nonlinear response properties using the intermediate state representation and the algebraic-diagrammatic construction polarization propagator approach: two-photon absorption spectra

An earlier proposed approach to molecular response functions based on the intermediate state representation (ISR) of polarization propagator and algebraic-diagrammatic construction (ADC) approximations is for the first time employed for calculations of nonlinear response properties. The two-photon absorption (TPA) spectra are considered. The hierarchy of the first- and second-order ADC∕ISR computational schemes, ADC(1), ADC(2), ADC(2)-x, and ADC(3/2), is tested in applications to H(2)O, HF, and C(2)H(4) (ethylene). The calculated TPA spectra are compared with the results of coupled cluster (CC) models and time-dependent density-functional theory (TDDFT) calculations, using the results of the CC3 model as benchmarks. As a more realistic example, the TPA spectrum of C(8)H(10) (octatetraene) is calculated using the ADC(2)-x and ADC(2) methods. The results are compared with the results of TDDFT method and earlier calculations, as well as to the available experimental data. A prominent feature of octatetraene and other polyene molecules is the existence of low-lying excited states with increased double excitation character. We demonstrate that the two-photon absorption involving such states can be adequately studied using the ADC(2)-x scheme, explicitly accounting for interaction of doubly excited configurations. Observed peaks in the experimental TPA spectrum of octatetraene are assigned based on our calculations.     

1,3,4-噁二唑衍生物的双光子吸收和双光子泵浦荧光

依据“推电子基-共轭中心-拉电子基-共轭中心-推电子基”的模型将电荷传输型1,3,4-噁二唑环嵌入芳香共轭体中, 通过Wittig-Horner反应合成了2种对称型强双光子吸收和双光子诱导荧光分子2,5-二[4-(2-芳基乙烯基)苯基]-1,3,4-噁二唑. 它们的氯仿溶液在锁模Nd: YAG激光器800 nm激光照射下, 发射出很强的双光子上转换荧光, 其最强荧光分别在波长507和475 nm. 采用非线性透过率法测得其双光子吸收截面分别为1.07×10^－46和6.6×10^－47 cm⁴•s•photon^－1. 这2个对称型D-π-A-π-D生色分子从激发端基到π共轭桥的有效能量传输, 对双光子吸收和双光子荧光发射能力贡献较大.     

Multipolar Porphyrin-Triazatruxene Arrays for Two-Photon Fluorescence Cell Imaging

Two-photon excited fluorescent (TPEF) materials are highly desirable for bioimaging applications owing to their unique characteristics of deep-tissue penetration and high spatiotemporal resolution. Herein, by connecting one, two, or three electron-deficient zinc porphyrin units to an electron-rich triazatruxene core via ethynyl π-bridges, conjugated multipolar molecules TAT-(ZnP) _n (n=1–3) were developed as TPEF materials for cell imaging. The three new dyes present high fluorescence quantum yields (0.40–0.47) and rationally improved two-photon absorption (TPA) properties. In particular, the peak TPA cross section of TAT-ZnP (436 GM) is significantly larger than that of the ZnP reference (59 GM). The δ_TPA values of TAT-(ZnP)₂ and TAT-(ZnP)₃ further increase to 1031 and up to 1496 GM, respectively, indicating the effect of incorporated ZnP units on the TPA properties. The substantial improvement of the TPEF properties is attributed to the formation of π-conjugated quadrapole/octupole molecules and the extension of D -π-A-D systems, which has been rationalized by density function theory (DFT) calculations. Moreover, all of the three new dyes display good biocompatibility and preferential targeting ability toward cytomembrane, thus can be superior candidates for TPEF imaging of living cells. Overall, this work demonstrated a promising strategy for the development of porphyrin-based TPEF materials by the construction and extension of D -π-A-D multipolar array.     

Highly efficient multiphoton-absorbing quadrupolar oligomers for frequency upconversion

Two series of quadrupolar diphenylamino-endcapped oligofluorenes, PhN-OF(n)-NPh (n=2-5) and PhN-OF(n)-TAZ-OF(n)-NPh (n=1-4), which have an electron-withdrawing 1,2,4-triazole (TAZ) moiety as central core, with D-π-A-π-D structural motif (D=donor, A=acceptor), have been synthesized by palladium-catalyzed Suzuki cross-coupling of 9,9-dibutyl-7-(diphenylamino)-2-fluorenylboronic acid and the corresponding (1,2,4-triazole-based) aryl halide as key step. On pumping with infrared femtosecond lasers, these oligomers showed very strong multiphoton-excited blue photoluminescence. These D-π-D and D-π-A-π-D quadrupolar oligofluorenes exhibit superior three-photon absorption properties compared to the respective D-π-A counterparts with a highest three-photon absorption cross-section (σ(3)) of up to 2.72×10(-77) cm(6) s(2) . Despite the comparable linear and multiphoton absorption properties of the two types of quadrupolar oligomers PhN-OF(n)-NPh and PhN-OF(n)-TAZ-OF(n)-NPh, only the former exhibit remarkably intense and highly efficient multiphoton-excited frequency-upconverted deep blue lasing, which gives rise to record high lasing efficiency of 0.097% and very narrow of full width at half-maximum of the lasing spectra. Our findings suggest that quadrupolar-type molecules/oligomers are superior for multiphoton excited frequency upconverted lasing to their dipolar counterparts and also provide important guidelines to design highly efficient three-photon absorption molecules for photoluminescence and lasing applications.     

具有大的双光子吸收截面的四羧酸二萘嵌苯衍生物的理论研究

用密度泛涵方法和ZINDO方法,从理论上研究了一系列四羧酸二萘嵌苯的衍生物(PTCDS)。对其平衡几何、电子结构和单双光子吸收性质进行了详细的计算研究。结果表明,此系列衍生物的双光子吸收截面主要由其主体结构(二萘嵌苯)决定。△EH-Lgap (HOMO与LUMO间的能隙)的减小,HOMO轨道能量的增大,分子主轴两端取代基给电子强度的增强,共轭长度的增大,分子刚性的增强都有利于此系列化合物双光子吸收截面的增大。并设计了比文献[22]报道的分子C有更大的双光子吸收截面的两个分子D1,D2。     

Enhancement of two-photon absorption cross-section in macrocyclic thiophenes with cavities in the nanometer regime

The linear and nonlinear optical properties of two thiophene-based cyclic molecules have been investigated. These molecules represent nanometer sized cavities which may be useful for novel photonic devices. By virtue of long-range interactions, these chromophores serve as novel architectures for enhanced two-photon absorption (TPA) properties. Measurements of the different size ring structures showed a 550% increase in the TPA cross-section for the larger macrocycle. Electronic structure calculations have suggested an increase in coupling of the excited states in these systems as the ring size is increased. Measurements of the ultrafast transient absorption and fluorescence were carried out with these systems in order to probe the interaction between the chromophores. The results of the transient decays as well as fluorescence anisotropy decay times gives stronger proof to the suggestion of delocalized states in the cyclic macrocycles. These results provide information regarding the optical properties of these novel systems useful for potential applications in photonics.     

两个系列星型准八极矩分子单光子和双光子吸收性质的理论研究

采用DFT/B3LYP/6-31G*和ZINDO-SOS方法, 系统地研究了两个系列(以苯为中心的a系列和以三苯胺为中心的b系列)星型准八极矩分子及其单枝物的单光子和双光子吸收性质. 结果表明, b系列分子有较大的双光子吸收截面和更长的单光子和双光子吸收波长. 星型三分枝分子的双光子吸收截面较其单个分枝增长了超过3倍因为存在分枝间的相互作用. 含1,3,4-噁二唑的分子比含2,1,3-苯并噻二唑的分子有更大的双光子吸收截面但是最大吸收波长却蓝移, 不在红外或近红外区域.     

Synthesis, photophysical properties and TD-DFT calculation of four two-photon absorbing triphenylamine derivatives

In this study,linear absorption,single-photon excited fluorescence,fluorescence quantum yields,fluorescence lifetime and two-photon excited fluorescence of a series of triphenylamine derivatives (L1,L2,L3 and L4) have been measured.L1 and L3 are D--A type dyes,while L2 and L4 are D--D--A type dyes (D=donor,A=acceptor).The investigated compounds consist of triphenylamine-bearing donor-substituted and/or systematically extended-conjugated length,which are designed to gain insight into the effect of the ethoxyl unit and-linkage length on the linear and nonlinear optical properties.The influence of solvent polarity on the photophysical properties was investigated.Employing time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations,the structure-property relationships are discussed.     

外围带咔唑基的联苯桥联二聚对苯乙烯撑的双光子吸收性能

报道了十字形结构对荧光生色团的双光子吸收(TPA)作用横截面积的影响. 1,4-二(9'-乙基咔唑基)- 3'-乙烯基苯(R1)是经典的具有D-π-D结构的TPA生色团. 通过一个联苯桥将两个双光吸引(TPA)链连接在一起得到的十字形分子(1)显示出比单链分子明显增大的双光子吸收作用横截面积(σ'). 在10-4 mol/L 的甲苯溶液中, 十字结构分子1的σ'值为491.0×10-50 cm4·s, 而R1的σ'值仅为137.5×10-50 cm4·s. σ'的放大可以归结为十字结构使TPA 生色团的偶极呈交叉排列, 抑制了浓溶液中的荧光猝灭.