Photoinduced electron transfer in a clicked fullerene–porphyrin conjugate

International audienceA stable C60 derivative bearing an azide functional group has been prepared and used as a building block for the preparation of a fullerene–porphyrin conjugate (F–P–F) by reaction with a Zn(II)–porphyrin bearing two terminal alkyne groups under the copper mediated Huisgen 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition conditions. The electrochemical and photophysical properties of the resulting multicomponent system have been investigated in detail. In benzonitrile, F–P–F undergoes photoinduced electron transfer and the resulting charge separated state is relatively long lived (τ = 0.48 µs). In contrast, intramolecular energy transfer has been evidenced in toluene, with the generation of the fullerene triplet level upon selective excitation of the porphyrin moiety. In this solvent, a CT emission band is observed in the near-infrared region (λmax = 940 nm) as a consequence of a conformational equilibrium causing, to a minor extent, the formation of intramolecular porphyrin–fullerene tight pairs. This finding is supported by measurements of singlet oxygen sensitization and quenching of the long-lived fullerene centered triplet state in the oxygen free solution