APPLIED PHOTOSYNTHESIS — Photoinduced ligation of excited-state CuOEP with solvent molecules studied by time-domain X-ray absorption. Studies of this and other porphyrins, key molecules in photosynthesis, could lead to future devices that store data with light rather than electricity.

Photoinduced ligation of excited-state CuOEP with solvent molecules studied by time-domain X-ray absorption

Square-planar molecules known as porphyrins are at the heart of natural and artificial photosynthesis, the conversion of sunlight into chemical energy. They provide a molecular springboard that captures photons of sunlight and bounces out energetic electrons. Porphyrins also have potential as light-powered catalysts and as components of photonics devices, such as information storage materials, that use light, rather than electrons, as their currency. Researchers from Argonne National Laboratory used an XOR beamline 11-ID to determine how different porphyrin molecules respond to being excited by light under different chemical conditions. Their findings could help scientists fine tune the chemical structure of porphyrins by changing the attached side groups and the metal ions at their center to make them respond to different wavelengths of light. Such modified porphyrins may one day form the building blocks of novel catalysts, photonic devices, and efficient solar-power units. See: L.X. Chen, G.B. Shaw, T. Liu, G. Jennings, and K. Attenkofer “Exciplex Formation of Copper(II) Octaethylporphyrin Revealed by Pulsed X-rays,” Chem. Phys. 299, 215 (2004).

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