Skip Navigation Links.
World Journal of Chemical Education. 2021, 9(4), 96-103
DOI: 10.12691/WJCE-9-4-1
Special Issue

Light Makes Smart - Photoactive Molecular Switches for Logic Gates

Nico Meuter1, Sebastian Spinnen1 and Michael W. Tausch1,

1Didaktik der Chemie, Bergische Universität Wuppertal, 42119 Wuppertal, Germany

Pub. Date: November 28, 2021
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photoprocesses in Chemical Education)
Full Text PDF

Cite this paper

Nico Meuter, Sebastian Spinnen and Michael W. Tausch. Light Makes Smart - Photoactive Molecular Switches for Logic Gates. World Journal of Chemical Education. 2021; 9(4):96-103. doi: 10.12691/WJCE-9-4-1

Abstract

This mini review presents a series of experiments in which light acts on two general phenomena: isomerization reactions and photoluminescence. The experiments described using the reversible photoactive molecular switch spiropyrane/merocyanine, is suited to teach fundamental concepts of photochemistry as well as to introduce innovative applications related to smart materials, molecular motors and logic gates.

Keywords

molecular switch, photochromism, solvatochromism, AIE (aggregation induced emission), molecular logic gates, super resolution microscopy

Copyright

Creative CommonsThis work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

References

[1]  D. Pijper, B. L. Feringa. “Molecular Transmission: Controlling the Twist Sense of a Helical Polymer with a Single Light-Driven Molecular Motor”, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 46, 3693-3696 (2007).
 
[2]  R. A. van Delden, M. K. J. ter Wiel, M. M. Pollard, J. Vicario, N. Koumura, B. L. Feringa. “Unidirectional molecular motor on a gold surface”, Nature, 437 1337-1340 (2005).
 
[3]  R. S. Stoll, S. Hecht, “Artificial Light-Gated Catalyst Systems”: Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 49, 5054-5075 (2010)
 
[4]  D. Bléger, S. Hecht. “Visible-Light-Activated Molecular Switches”, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 54, 11339-11349 (2015).
 
[5]  M. B. Leinen, P. Klein, F. L. Sebastian, N. F. Zorn, S. Adamczyk, S. Allard, U. Scherf, J. Zaumseil. “Spiropyran-Functionalized Polymer–Carbon Nanotube Hybrids for Dynamic Optical Memory Devices and UV Sensors”, Adv. Electron. Mater., 6, 2000717-2000727 (2020).
 
[6]  M. W. Tausch. “Ungleiche Gleichgewichte”, CHEMKON, 3, 123-127 (1996).
 
[7]  H. E. Prypsztejn, R. M. Negri. “An Experiment on Photochromism and Kinetics for the Undergraduate Laboratory”, J. Chem. Educ., 78, 645-648 (2001).
 
[8]  M. W. Tausch. “Teaching Photochemistry with Microscale Experiments. A Contribution for the Ongoing Curriculum Modernisation”, Educ. Quimica, 16, 529-533 (2005).
 
[9]  J. Piard. “Influence of the Solvent on the Thermal Back Reaction of One Spiropyran”, J. Chem. Educ., 91, 2105-2111 (2014).
 
[10]  M. W. Tausch. “Photoactive Thin Films in Science Education”, World J. Chem. Educ., 6, 14-17 (2018).
 
[11]  N. Meuter, S. Spinnen, Y. Yurdanur, M. W. Tausch. “Spiropyrane – a Dream Compound for Teaching Purposes – Experimental Approaches to Basic Concepts of Chemistry Using the Molecular Switch Spiropyrane/Merocyanine”, CHEMKON, 27, 169-178 (2020).
 
[12]  M. W. Tausch, N. Meuter, S. Spinnen. “Photoprocesses in Chemical Education. Key Experiments for Core Concepts”, Educ. Quimica, issue 3 (2017).
 
[13]  E. D. Bergmann, A. Weizmann, E. Fischer. “Structure and Polarity of Some Polycyclic Spiropyrans”, J. Amer. Chem. Soc., 72, 5009-5012 (1950).
 
[14]  M. W. Tausch, N. Meuter, C. Bohrmann-Linde et al. https://chemiemitlicht.uni-wuppertal.de/en.html.
 
[15]  N. Meuter. “Photolumineszenz und Photochromie in Lösungen und in Feststoffmatrices – Interaktionsbox Photo-Mol“, Doctoral Thesis, Wuppertal (2019).
 
[16]  S. Spinnen. “Molekulare Logik mit farbabsorbierenden und -emittierenden Molekülen auf Basis von Spiropyran“, Doctoral Thesis, Wuppertal (2019).
 
[17]  J. Mei, Y. Hong, Lam, Jacky W Y, A. Qin, Y. Tang, B. Z. Tang. “The Whole Is More Brilliant than Parts”, Advanced materials, 26, 5429-5479 (2014).
 
[18]  J. Andréasson, U. Pischel. “Molecules with a sense of logic: a progress report”, Chem. Soc. Rev., issue 5 (2015).
 
[19]  S. Hell. “Nanoscopy with Focused Light (Nobel Lecture)” Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 54, 8054-8066 (2015).
 
[20]  R. Brunnert, C. Bohrmann-Linde, N. Meuter, N. Pereira Vaz, S. Spinnen, Y. Yurdanur, M. W. Tausch. “The Fascinating World of Photochemistry. Video Tutorials for Core Concepts in Science Education“, Educ. Quimica, 29, 108-117 (2018).