Excited-state dynamics and efficient triplet formation in phenylthiophene compounds.
Ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopy monitors the solution-phase dynamics of 2-phenylthiophene (PT), 2-methyl-5-phenylthiophene (MPT), and 2,4-dimethyl-5-phenylthiophene (DMPT) following excitation to the first singlet excited state. Rapid spectral evolution indicates that structural relaxation on the S(1) potential energy surface occurs within ~100 fs, whereas the picosecond-scale kinetics reveal efficient intersystem crossing to the triplet manifold of states. The rate of intersystem crossing is significantly faster for DMPT (21.6 ± 1.0 ps) than for PT (102 ± 5 ps) and MPT (132 ± 3 ps). The measurements provide new limits on the timescale for a competing isomerization reaction in which the phenyl group changes position on the thiophene ring. The role of methyl substitution in driving the intersystem crossing is discussed.
Department of Chemistry, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045-7572, USA.
Igor L
IL
Zheldakov
Jenna M
JM
Wasylenko
Christopher G
CG
Elles