Photochemical and electrochemical properties of porphyrin dimers containing an anhydride spacer

Abstract

A study on thermogravimetric analyses, surface photovoltage (SPV), electron paramagnetic resonance and electrochemical properties comparing a porphyrin dimer with that of corresponding monomer was presented. The SPV intensity is weaker than that corresponding monomer, and with field-induced surface photovoltage spectroscopy (FISPS) reveal that all the compounds are p-type semiconductors. The spectral bands of all the porphyrins corresponded to π → π* transitions. Electrons (or holes) can be trapped on the porphyrins by applying both light and negative (or positive) electric field. The electrochemistry and EPR of the porphyrins show clearly that a π–π interaction existed between the two macrocycles of the dimer.

Keywords:

• Porphyrin dimer
• Electrochemical and photochemical properties
• Surface photovoltage spectroscopy

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the support of this research by the National Science Foundation of China (20071014, 20273027, 20701023, 30770568) and National 863 Plans Projects of China (2006AA04z349).