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Synthesis, optical and electrochemical properties of aseries of push-pull dyes based on the 2-(3-cyano-4,5,5-

trimethylfuran-2(5H)-ylidene)malononitrile (TCF)acceptor

Guillaume Noirbent, Corentin Pigot, Thanh-Tuân Bui, Sébastien Péralta,Malek Nechab, Didier Gigmes, Frédéric Dumur

To cite this version:Guillaume Noirbent, Corentin Pigot, Thanh-Tuân Bui, Sébastien Péralta, Malek Nechab, et al.. Syn-thesis, optical and electrochemical properties of a series of push-pull dyes based on the 2-(3-cyano-4,5,5-trimethylfuran-2(5H)-ylidene)malononitrile (TCF) acceptor. Dyes and Pigments, Elsevier, 2021, 184,pp.108807. �10.1016/j.dyepig.2020.108807�. �hal-02936031�

Synthesis, optical and electrochemical properties of a

series of push-pull dyes based on the 2-(3-cyano-4,5,5-

trimethylfuran-2(5H)-ylidene)malononitrile (TCF)

acceptor

Guillaume Noirbent 1,*, Corentin Pigot 1, Thanh-Tuân Bui 2, Sébastien Péralta 2, Malek Nechab 1,

Didier Gigmes 1 and Frédéric Dumur 1,*

1 Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, ICR UMR7273, F-13397 Marseille France 2 CY Cergy Paris Université, LPPI, F-95000 Cergy, France

* Correspondence: guillaume.noirbent@univ-amu.fr, frederic.dumur@univ-amu.fr

Abstract:

A series of chromophores was designed and synthesized using 2-(3-cyano-4,5,5-trimethylfuran-

2 (5H) -ylidene) malononitrile (TCF) as the electron acceptor and differing from each other by the use of

thirteen different electron donors. The different dyes were characterized for their optical and

electrochemical properties and theoretical calculations were also carried out to support the

experimental results. By changing the electron donor in the thirteen dyes, chromophores absorbing

between 430 nm and 700 nm could be synthesized. Solvatochromism of the different dyes was analyzed

in 23 solvents of different polarity and a positive solvatochromism was determined for all

chromophores using the semi-empirical solvent polarity scales based on the Kamlet-Taft parameters (π

*) or the Catalan parameters (SdP and SPP).

Keywords: Push-pull dyes; solvatochromism; Claisen-Schmidt condensation; visible absorption; near

infrared absorption; TCF.

1. Introduction

In recent decades, push-pull dyes have attracted a lot of attention due to their numerous

applications ranging from non-linear optics (NLO) [1-2] to organic photovoltaics (OPV),[3-4] organic

field effect transistors (OFET),[5] organic light emitting diodes (OLED)[6] and polymerization

photoinitiators.[7-12]

Typically, push-pull dyes are molecules comprising an electron donor and an electron acceptor

connected by mean of a π -conjugated and planar system.[13-14] This configuration results in a

significant electron delocalization from the donor to the acceptor facilitated by the π-conjugated spacer.

By improving the electron-donating and the electron-withdrawing ability of the two moieties,

compounds with low bandgaps can be obtained. These compounds also exhibit a characteristic

absorption band in the visible region corresponding to the intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) band

whose position depends on the nature of both the donor and acceptor groups as well as the number of

double bonds involved in the electronic delocalization.[15-16] This transition typically corresponds to

the transfer of an electron from the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) to the lowest

unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO). Reducing the difference between the HOMO and LUMO

orbitals results in a bathochromic offset of the maximum absorption. Even if the progress achieved in

the design of push-pull dyes is remarkable, there are still incentives for developing new materials with

more extended absorptions, thus providing panchromatic dyes.[17-19] These structures are notably

extensively studied in solar cells. In this specific research field, low bandgap materials are actively

researched as these compounds can also be easily oxidized and transfer an electron from the electron-

donating material towards the electron-accepting one upon sunlight irradiation.[20-23] Low bandgap

materials are also now extensively studied in photopolymerization due to the improved light

penetration in the photocurable resins at long wavelength.[24-28] Thus, if the light penetration in the

resin is limited to a few hundreds of micrometers at 400 nm, this latter can reach 5 cm at 800 nm,

justifying the search for new structures.[29] Therefore, the access to thick samples is rendered possible

by the use of long-wavelength photoinitiators.[30] Parallel to this, for applications such as visible light

photopolymerization, dyes perfectly fitting the emission of the irradiation sources are required.

Therefore, a perfect control of the absorption maxima of the dye that will be used as the photosensitizer

is a prerequisite to efficiently initiate the polymerization process and generate reactive species such as

radicals or cations.[31-33] In these different research fields, many electron acceptors have been studied

over the years as exemplified by malononitrile 1[34], substituted tricyanopropenes 2[35], 1,1,3-tricyano-

2-substituted propenes 3[36], dicyanovinyl-thiophen-5-ylidenes 4[37], tetranitrofluorene 5[38], pyran

derivatives 6 and 7 [39,40], dicyanoimidazoles 8 [41], pyrazines 9 [42], hydantions and rhodanines 10

[43], (thio)barbituric derivatives 11 [44], isoxazolones 12 [45], Meldrum derivatives 13 [46],

indanedione derivatives 14 [47], 15 [48,49], benzo[d]thiazoliums 16[50], benzo[d]imidazoliums 17 [51]

and pyridinium 18. [52]

Among all electron acceptors, 2-(3-cyano-4,5,5-trimethylfuran-2(5H)-ylidene)malononitrile (TCF)

has been extensively studied due to the ability to design push-pull dyes with ICT bands extending from

the visible range to the near infrared region.[53-55] Numerous derivatives notably found applications

in NLO and energy conversion.[56-59] Besides, a systematic study devoted to examine the influence of

the electron-donating group on the optical properties of TCF-based push-pull dyes has never been

carried out. Lower interest for TCF as the electron acceptor compared to the aforementioned acceptors

is also justified by the fact that contrarily to indane-1,3-dione, barbituric and thiobarbituric, this electron

acceptor is not commercially available. Indeed, the most popular electron acceptors are the benchmark

ones. Interest for TCF as the electron acceptor is also supported by the easiness of synthesis of the dyes,

but also by the easy access to TCF itself. Indeed, TCF can be prepared in one step, by reaction of

malononitrile and 3-hydroxy-3-methylbutan-2-one i.e. from cheap starting materials and in high

reaction yields (85-90%).[60-63] As far as the synthesis of dyes is concerned, synthetic approaches that

do not require the use of transition metal catalysts, drastic reaction conditions (inert atmosphere,

anhydrous solvents, low temperature reactions) and the use of expensive reagents are also highly

appealing. In this field, one of the simplest way to produce push-pull dyes is the Claisen-Schmidt

condensation, consisting in the coupling an aldehyde with an acceptor possessing an activated methyl

group under basic conditions. This approach clearly competes with the traditional Knoevenagel

reaction which is extensively used when the electron acceptors possess an activated methylene group

such as in the case of (thio)barbituric or indane-1,3-dione derivatives.[64-65] If TCF is an acceptor of

interest for the design of dyes, such push-pull structures have never been tested in photopolymerization

for example, providing a possible and new application for these dyes. This is certainly attributable to

the fact that photopolymerists prefer to test dyes for which all the photophysical properties of

photoinitiators have already been examined prior being examined for polymerization tests. To end,

TCF-based dyes are also characterized by a remarkable thermal stability, as evidenced in the literature

and constituting another major advantage of these dyes.[66-69]

In this article, TCF has been used to synthesize a series of thirteen push-pull dyes (see chemical

structures of TCF1-TCF13 in Figure 1). Photophysical and electrochemical properties of the thirteen

dyes, as well as their solvatochromic properties were also studied. To support the experimental results,

theoretical calculations were made.

Figure 1. Chemical structures of the thirteen dyes TCF1-TCF13 prepared with TCF as the electron

acceptor and examined in this study.

2. Results and Discussion

2.1. Synthesis of the dyes TCF1-TCF13

All dyes TCF1-TCF13 presented in this work have been synthesized by a simple, green and

straightforward two-component Claisen-Schmidt condensation. This protocol consisted in reacting the

electron acceptor TCF containing an activated methyl group in its structure with a series of 13 aldehydes

D1-D13 using piperidine as the catalyst and ethanol as the solvent (See Figure 2).

TCF1-TCF13 were obtained, after overnight reaction in ethanol under reflux, with reaction yields

ranging from 79% yield for TCF8 to 92% for TCF3 (see Table 1). All the compounds were obtained as

solids after evaporation of ethanol and their purification could be limited to a simple precipitation in an

ether:pentane mixture. For all compounds TCF1-TCF13, their chemical structures could be confirmed

by 1H, 13C NMR, and HRMS analyses (see Supporting Information).

Figure 2. Synthetic pathways to TCF1-TCF13 and the thirteen aldehydes used in this study.

Table 1. Reaction yields obtained for the synthesis of TCF1-TCF13.

Compounds TCF1 TCF2 TCF3 TCF4 TCF5 TCF6 TCF7

Reaction yields (%) 84 89 92 88 83 86 85

Compounds TCF8 TCF9 TCF10 TCF11 TCF12 TCF13

Reaction yields (%) 79 85 90 83 81 86

2.2. Optical Properties

The thirteen chromophores examined in these works are “push-pull” chromophores. All the

compounds were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy to determine their absorption spectra in

dichloromethane (DCM). As shown in Figure 4, this series of “push-pull” dyes exhibits an intense

absorption band with absorption maxima ranging from 437 nm for TCF10 bearing the weakest electron

donor of this series to 592 nm for TCF3 possessing the strongest electron-donor. As specificity, all these

different dyes possess a short spacer in their backbones. Upon elongation of the π-conjugated system,

extension of the conjugation resulted in a significant redshift of the absorption maximum, shifting from

592 nm for TCF3 (the dye exhibiting the most redshifted absorption for the chromophores with a short

spacer) to 679 nm for TCF6 (See Figure 3a). It has to be noticed that TCF6 possesses the most red-shifted

absorption of the series with a non-negligible contribution in the near-infrared region. Such an

absorption at long wavelength is relatively unusual for push-pull dyes comprising TCF as the electron

acceptor and an absorption in this region was only reported for polymethine dyes [70-72] or indolizine-

based dyes in the literature.[73] Based on their chemical structures, indolizine-based dyes are the most

similar dyes compared to the TCF-based dyes examined in this work due to their donor-spacer-acceptor

structures and the absorption maximum reported for one of the indolizine-based dyes at 758 nm (AH25)

is directly related to the use of an extended electron donor, as in the case of TCF6. To the best of our

knowledge, TCF6 is the second push-pull dye exhibiting the most red-shifted absorption after AH25 for

a TCF-based dye. Besides, due to the fact that the Michler’s aldehyde used in TCF6 only comprises N,N-

dimethylaniline groups as donors whereas AH25 comprises a remarkable electron donor (i.e. an

indolizine moiety associated with a thiophene spacer), the absorption maximum of TCF6 is

consequently blue-shifted compared to that of AH25. It has to be noticed that if the absorption

maximum of TCF6 is greatly redshifted compared to most of the TCF-based push-pull dyes reported in

the literature, it remains however blueshifted compared to other Michler’s aldehyde-based dyes

comprising stronger electron acceptors such as 3-(dicyanomethylidene)indan-1-one (λmax = 680 nm in

CH2Cl2) or 1,3-bis(dicyanomethylidene)indane (λmax = 707 nm in CH2Cl2).[74]

Interestingly, in the case of TCF13, despites the presence of the elongated spacer in its scaffold,

an absorption maximum drastically blue-shifted compared to that of TCF6 could be detected, peaking

at 515 nm (vs. 679 nm for TCF6) so that position of its ICT band was similar to that of TCF1 (See Figure

3b). This significant blue-shift can be assigned to the weakness of the electron donating groups used in

TCF13 i.e. the para-methoxyphenyl groups. Due to their weak electron-releasing ability of the para-

methoxyphenyl groups, elongation of the π-conjugated spacer in TCF13 could not compensate the poor

electron donating ability of the donor so that the absorption maximum of TCF13 was blue-shifted

compared to that of TCF6.

400 500 600 700

0.0

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1.0

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.)

Wavelength (nm)

TCF1

TCF3

TCF4

TCF5

TCF7

TCF8

TCF9

TCF10

TCF11

TCF12

a)

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TCF2

TCF6

TCF13

b)

Figure 3. a) UV-visible absorption spectra of TCF1, TCF3-TCF5, TCF7-TCF12 in DCM. b) UV-

visible absorption spectra of TCF2, TCF6, TCF13 in DCM

On the basis of the position of the ICT bands, this series of 11 chromophores bearing a short π-

conjugated spacer can be divided into two distinct groups: the first one comprises dyes bearing a weak

electron donor such as in the case of compounds TCF4, TCF5, TCF7, TCF9 and TCF10 and a second

group, those bearing a strong electron donor such as in the case of compounds TCF2, TCF3, TCF8,

TCF11 and TCF12. Considering that all dyes have been prepared with the same electron acceptor, a

scale of electron-donating ability can be established for the different donors. Examination of their molar

extinction coefficients (see Figure 4) revealed that TCF2, TCF3, TCF6 and TCF12 had the highest molar

extinction coefficients of the series, reaching 103600, 72940, 58290 and 44250 M-1.cm-1 respectively. The

high molar extinction coefficient of TCF3 can be assigned to the strong electronic delocalization existing

in this molecule, benefiting from a stronger electron donor than in TCF2. Indeed, in the case of TCF3,

the electron donating ability of the donor is reinforced by the presence of the butoxy group in ortho-

position of the π-conjugated system, contributing to the electronic delocalization while jointly

improving the solubility of the dye. Finally, the highest molar coefficients were found for the two dyes

exhibiting an extended π-conjugated spacer (i.e. TCF12 and TCF13), consistent with the results reported

in the literature.[75] Indeed, these two dyes exhibit the largest oscillator strengths, resulting from the

increase of the backbone length.

400 500 600 700 800

0

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(L

.mo

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m-1)

Wavelength (nm)

TCF13

TCF12

TCF11

TCF10

TCF9

TCF8

TCF7

TCF6

TCF5

TCF4

TCF3

TCF2

TCF1

Figure 4. UV-visible absorption spectra of TCF1-TCF13 in chloroform.

2.3. Solvatochromism

TCF1-TCF13 showed a sufficient solubility in common organic solvents, so that their

solvatochromism could be examined in 23 solvents of different polarities. Besides, among the different

solvents investigated, ethanol and butane-1-ol were discarded for the solvatochromic study due to

absorption maxima in complete disagreement with those obtained in the other solvents. This behavior

may be assigned to the low solubility of dyes in alcohols, but also to the formation of aggregates or

nanoparticles that drastically modify the positions of the absorption maximum.[76-79] Similarly,

irregular solvatochromic behaviors are often reported in halogenated solvents (dichloromethane,

chloroform) so that these two solvents are often discarded for solvatochromic studies.[34,48,52] Indeed,

during the synthesis of TCF-based dyes, all compounds precipitated in ethanol which was the solvent

used for the reaction. Even if absorption spectra of TCF1-TCF13 were nonetheless recorded in alcohols,

the coexistence of free molecules and aggregates in solution adversely affected the position of the

absorption maxima. A summary of the absorption maxima for the thirteen dyes is provided in Tables 2

and 3. As shown in Tables 2 and 3, a clear modification of the absorption maxima with the solvent

polarity could be evidenced, corresponding well to a solvatochromic behavior.

Table 2. Optical properties of TCF1-TCF6 in 23 solvents.

compounds TCF11 TCF21 TCF31 TCF41 TCF51 TCF61

acetone 496 564 588 439 463 642

acetonitrile 501 568 590 441 465 644

AcOEt 492 546 572 434 463 614

anisole 509 570 587 444 473 653

butanol 513 577 596 452 475 690

chloroform 513 576 591 460 479 673

cyclohexane 489 nd² 533 432 443 583

1,2-dichloroethane 509 578 593 449 475 684

dichloromethane 512 577 592 457 474 679

diethyl carbonate 487 530 558 431 454 605

diethyl ether 494 534 560 434 456 602

diglyme 504 570 584 439 470 652

1,4-dioxane 488 530 552 432 446 605

DMA 506 582 599 450 472 687

DMF 509 580 600 451 472 689

DMSO 513 589 607 439 491 707

ethanol 509 577 596 443 469 697

heptane 486 nd² nd² 430 441 nd²

nitrobenzene 524 594 608 464 488 706

THF 496 556 580 438 465 627

toluene 499 533 563 439 459 609

triethylamine 490 520 536 434 448 587

p-xylene 497 529 560 438 453 605 1 Position of the ICT bands are given in nm 2 nd : not determined

Table 3. Optical properties of TCF7-TCF13 in 23 solvents.

compounds TCF71 TCF81 TCF91 TCF101 TCF111 TCF121 TCF131

acetone 470 539 463 439 524 537 499

acetonitrile 471 541 462 441 528 536 499

AcOEt 467 530 460 434 515 530 494

anisole 481 564 476 444 540 549 504

butanol 478 559 470 452 541 559 511

chloroform 485 573 476 460 552 573 517

cyclohexane 448 535 447 432 513 528 486

1,2-dichloroethane 481 565 473 449 547 562 517

dichloromethane 482 564 473 457 547 564 515

diethyl carbonate 462 527 458 431 512 526 487

diethyl ether 484 535 460 433 518 534 493

diglyme 474 543 469 439 530 549 503

1,4-dioxane 460 530 460 432 511 527 491

DMA 476 547 468 450 534 550 505

DMF 477 551 468 451 533 551 511

DMSO 493 554 470 439 536 554 513

ethanol 476 553 466 443 533 553 514

heptane 446 523 447 430 509 522 482

nitrobenzene 486 575 481 464 558 571 528

THF 470 539 463 438 523 436 502

toluene 470 536 468 439 523 541 496

triethylamine 462 528 451 434 515 530 487

p-xylene 470 536 469 438 522 537 496 1 Position of the ICT bands are given in nm

Analysis of the solvatochromism revealed the intramolecular nature of the charge transfer, what

could be verified by performing successive dilutions of the solutions. Considering that the intensity of

the charge transfer band decreased linearly with the concentrations of dyes, it could be concluded that

the charge transfer observed in solution was of intramolecular nature. These results were confirmed by

the analysis of the solvatochromism in solvents of different polarities, supporting the presence of the

intramolecular charge transfer by the similitude of the absorption bands.

Various empirical polarity scales have been developed over the years to interpret the solvent-

solute interaction and the Kamlet-Taft’s [80], Dimroth-Reichardt’s [79], Lippert-Mataga’s [81],

Catalan’s [82], Kawski-Chamma Viallet’s [83], McRae Suppan’s [84] and Bakhshiev’s [85] scales are the

most widely used. If polarity scales such as the Kamlet-Taft’s or the Dimroth-Reichardt’s scales are

adapted to examine the solvatochromism in absorption, other polarity scales such as Kawski-Chamma

Viallet’s, McRae Suppan’s and Bakhshiev’s scales examine the variation of the Stokes shifts vs. the

solvent polarity. Considering the number of molecules and the number of solvent examined, only the

solvatochromism in absorption was examined.

Among the different empirical polarity scales used to rationalize the variation of the ICT bands

in solution, the most suitable ones were determined as being the Catalan’s, Reichardt’s and Kamlet-

Taft’s scales. More precisely, in the case of the Kamlet-Taft empirical scale, better linear correlations

were obtained while plotting ΔE = f (π*) instead using a multiparameter approach (See Tables S3 and

S6). While using the Catalan empirical scale, linear correlations could be obtained with two different

parameters, namely the solvent dipolarity (SdP) and the solvent polarity / polarizability (SPP)

parameters. The different plots are presented in SI. For most of the dyes, remarkable linear correlations

with large values for the square of the correlation coefficient (R2) could be determined using the

polarity/polarizability parameter for the Catalan empirical scale (see Tables in SI). Conversely, a lower

adequation was found while using the solvent dipolarity parameter. Contrarily to the Kamlet-Taft

model in which all non-specific solvent effects are included in the π* parameter, the advantage of the

Catalan solvatochromic model is the ability to separate non-specific solvent effects such as the polarity

and the polarizability. With regards to the results obtained while using the solvent dipolarity and the

solvent polarity / polarizability parameters (See Table S4), the solvent polarizability has been identified

as the main factor governing the spectral shifts of all dyes. Interestingly, in some specific cases, as shown

in Figure 5, good correlations could be obtained with three different polarity scales (Catalan’s,

Reichardt’s and Kamlet-Taft’s scales), as exemplified with TCF3. In fact, the best correlations were

obtained for the three dyes exhibiting the strongest electron donors, namely TCF2, TCF3 and TCF6,

squares of the correlation coefficients (R²) higher than 0.7 being obtained with the different polarity

scales. Noticeably, TCF5 that exhibits a weaker electron donor than TCF2, TCF3 and TCF6 could also

give a good correlation using the SPP parameter (with R² = 0.841). However, linear regression using the

SdP parameter furnished a lower square of the correlation coefficient of 0.692. More interestingly, its

analogue TCF7 in which allyl groups have been replaced by butoxy groups showed lower R²

coefficients, with R² of 0.778 with the SPP parameter and 0.483 for the SdP parameter. Even alkyl chains

used as substituents should not drastically influence the optical properties of TCF5 and TCF7, ability of

the electron-rich allylic group in TCF5 to form interactions different from that of the aliphatic chains

was clearly evidenced. Noticeable differences of their squares of correlation coefficients are notably

evidenced with the Catalan polarity scale.

Considering that the α factor of the Kamlet-Taft polarity scale is indicative of the ability of the

solvents to donate a hydrogen to form a hydrogen bond with the solute,[86] it can be thus concluded

that due to the presence of heteroatoms in the TCF moiety as well as in the electron-donating part, TCF1-

TCF13 are thus good candidates to form hydrogen bonds with the solvent. This behavior is reinforced

in the case of TCF2, TCF3 and TCF6 bearing accessible nitrogen atoms. For all dyes, a positive

solvatochromism was found, with a decrease of the HOMO-LUMO gap with the solvent polarity,

suggesting a stabilization of the electronic excited states relative to the ground state upon increase of

the solvent polarity.

Figure 5. Linear correlations obtained while using three different polarity scales for TCF3 (Catalan a)

and b) Kamet-Taft c), and Reichardt d) empirical scales).

Examination of the slopes obtained by plotting the HOMO-LUMO gaps vs. the Taft parameters

is indicative of the electronic redistribution occurring within the dyes upon excitation. The same holds

true if the Catalan or the Reichardt’s plots are considered. As shown in Figure 6a, all dyes proved to be

sensitive to the solvent polarity. However, three different groups could be identified (See Figure 6b).

Notably, TCF2, TCF3 and TCF6 that possess dialkylaniline groups in their electron-donating parts are

the most sensitive ones. However, this sensitivity is not observed for the triphenylamine-based dyes

(TCF8, TCF11 and TCF12) which are quite close in structure to the dialkylaniline-based dyes TCF2,

TCF3 and TCF6. It can be assigned to the higher electronic delocalization of the electron-lone pair of the

nitrogen atom in the case of the triphenylamine-based dyes, rendering the nitrogen atom less sensitive

to its environment. As a final group are all the dyes possessing aromatic rings substituted with alkoxy

groups (TCF4, TCF5, TCF9 and TCF10). Considering that the alkoxy groups are the less donating

groups, this is also the dyes exhibiting the widest bandgaps. Due to the weak electron-donating ability

of their respective electron donors, only a small charge redistribution upon excitation occurs. Among

all dyes examined in this work, the greatest solvatochromic shift was observed for TCF6, approaching

120 nm. Indeed, if a maximum absorption at 583 nm was found for TCF6 in cyclohexane, a redshift of

the ICT band at 707 nm was found in DMSO so that a shift as high as 120 nm could be determined

between the apolar and the highly polar solvent. It has to be noticed that a strong solvatochromic

behavior was previously reported in the literature for Michler’s aldehyde-based dyes comprising

terpyridine as electron acceptors for which a shift as high as 85 nm was observed.[52] For comparisons,

a solvatochromic shift of ca. 60 nm was observed for 3-(dicyanomethylidene)indan-1-one-based dyes

and 50 nm for 1,3-bis(dicyanomethylidene)indane-based dyes, also comprising Michler’s aldehyde as

the donor.[87] Therefore, it can be concluded that in this study, the greatest solvatochromic shift ever

reported with Michler’s aldehyde-based dyes has been obtained with TCF6.

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

1.8

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E

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)

Taft parameter (*)

TCF1

TCF2

TCF3

TCF4

TCF5

TCF6

TCF7

TCF8

TCF9

TCF10

TCF11

TCF12

TCF13

0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0

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2.2

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E

(e

V)

Taft parameter (*)

TCF2

TCF3

TCF4

TCF5

TCF6

TCF7

TCF8

TCF9

TCF10

TCF11

TCF12

Figure 6. top: Variation of the HOMO-LUMO gaps of TCF1-TCF13 with the Taft parameters (π*).

Bottom: The three sets of dyes (in red, blue and black) exhibiting the same sensitivity to the solvent

polarities.

Examination of their luminescence properties also revealed TCF1-TCF13 to be weakly emissive.

Indeed, photoluminescence of the TCF-based dyes could only be measured for TCF1-TCF3, the other

dyes TCF4-TCF13 being not emissive (See Figure 7). The largest Stokes shift was found for TCF1, with

a value of 70 nm. Conversely, small Stokes shifts were determined for the two other dyes TCF2 and

TCF3, being respectively of 35 and 25 nm. These Stokes shifts are relatively small, and comparable to

that observed for other TCF-based dyes reported in the literature.[88-89]

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TCF2F

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TCF1

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(nm)

Figure 7. UV-visible and photoluminescence spectra of TCF1-TCF3 recorded in chloroform.

2.4. Theoretical investigations

Optical properties of the thirteen dyes were also examined theoretically by performing density

functional theory (DFT) calculations at the B3LYP / 6-311G (d, p) level using the Gaussian09 program.

For the different calculations, dichloromethane was selected as the solvent and a polarizable continuum

model (PCM) was used to simulate the solvent. Results of the theoretical investigations are summarized

in the Table 4 where the HOMO and LUMO energy levels, and the main transitions involved in the ICT

bands are reported. Simulated absorption spectra of TCF1-TCF13 are given in Figure 8.

200 300 400 500 600 700 8000

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

120000

140000

160000

180000

Wavelength (nm)

TCF1

TCF2

TCF3

TCF4

TCF5

TCF6

TCF7

TCF8

TCF9

TCF10

TCF11

TCF12

TCF13

Figure 8. Simulated absorption spectra of TCF1-TCF13 in dilute dichloromethane.

As anticipated and due to the fact that the same electron acceptor has been used to elaborate the

thirteen dyes, only small variations of the LUMO energy levels could be observed, ranging from -3.59

eV for TCF9 to -3.06 eV for TCF3. Conversely, a severe stabilization of the LUMO energy level was

found for TCF8 comprising two TCF groups, the LUMO energy level decreasing to -3.91 eV. On the

contrary, values of the HOMO energy levels varied drastically from a dye to another one due to the

differences of electron donating groups. Thus, HOMO energy levels ranging from -5.59 eV for TCF6 to

-6.58 eV for TCF9 could be determined. Interestingly, comparison of the theoretical and experimental

optical bandgaps revealed a good adequation between the two values. A severe mismatch was found

for TCF8, for which a difference as high as 80 nm was determined between the experimental (564 nm)

and the theoretical (644 nm) values. This mismatch can be confidently assigned to the fact that TCF8 is

the only acceptor-donor-acceptor A-D-A structure of the series, rendering its UV-visible absorption

spectrum more difficult to model.

Table 4. Summary of simulated absorption characteristics in dilute dichloromethane of synthetized

compounds. Data were obtained in dichloromethane solution.

HOMO -1

(eV)

HOMO

(eV)

LUMO

(eV)

LUMO +1

(eV)

λmax(theo)

(nm)

ΔEtheo

(eV)

λmax(exp)

(nm)

ΔEexp

(eV)

TCF1 -6.39 -6.32 -3.57 -1.85 498 -2.49 512 -2.42

TCF2 -6.80 -6.01 -3.29 -1.35 515 -2.41 577 -2.15

TCF3 -6.61 -5.76 -3.06 -1.17 519 -2.39 592 -2.09

TCF4 -7.16 -6.43 -3.48 -1.48 461 -2.69 457 -2.71

TCF5 -7.00 -6.26 -3.35 -1.41 481 -2.58 474 -2.62

TCF6 -6.06 -5.59 -3.19 -1.38 604 -2.05 679 -1.83

TCF7 -6.95 -6.19 -3.30 -1.35 484 -2.56 482 -2.57

TCF8 -6.86 -6.33 -3.91 -3.66 644 -1.92 564 -2.20

TCF9 -7.26 -6.58 -3.59 -1.55 453 -2.74 473 -2.62

TCF10 -7.17 -6.51 -3.53 -1.59 469 -2.64 457 -2.71

TCF11 -6.81 -6.12 -3.57 -1.92 546 -2.27 547 -2.27

TCF12 -6.71 -5.95 -3.41 -1.63 566 -2.19 564 -2.20

TCF13 -6.88 -6.15 -3.49 -1.84 550 -2.25 515 -2.41

Optimized geometries and the electronic distributions of the HOMO-LUMO orbitals of all dyes

are provided in the supporting information. As shown in the Figure 9, examination of the contour plots

of TCF1-TCF13 revealed the electronic distribution to be consistent with that typically observed for

donor-acceptor D-A structures, with a HOMO energy level mostly located onto the electron-donating

part and the LUMO energy level on the TCF moiety. Interestingly, an asymmetric distribution of the

LUMO energy level of TCF8 could be found whereas the two TCF moieties were expected to equally

contribute to the LUMO level. On the basis of the electronic distribution of the LUMO energy level of

TCF8, it can therefore support the severe mismatch found between the experimental and theoretical

position of the absorption maximum.

Figure 9. Contour plots of the HOMO and LUMO energy levels of TCF1 and TCF8.

2.5. Electrochemical properties

All compounds examined in this study have been analyzed by cyclic voltammetry (CV) to

determine their electrochemical properties in a dilute solution of dichloromethane. All CV curves are

given in the ESI and a set of curves is provided in the Figure 10. Redox potentials of all dyes against the

half-wave oxidation potential of the ferrocene/ferrocenium cation pair are given in the Table 5.

In this study, all the compounds possess the same electron accepting group but differ by the

nature of their electron-donating groups. So,as expected, it leads to the detection of similar reduction

potentials for all dyes, proving that the reduction is located on the cyano group of the TCF moiety (See

Table 5).

Oppositely, the different donor parts lead to diverse oxidative potentials. TCF4, TCF5,

TCF7,TCF9 and TCF10 are all similar since electrons of these dyes comprise an “-OR “ group on the

phenyl ring. Nevertheless, we may notice some disparities among this group of compounds. Indeed,

TCF10 has the highest oxydation potential of the series probaly due to the long alkyl chain in ortho

position causing a torsion in the molecule. Moreover, in accordance with the bathochromic effects

observed with the UV spectra, only the para-substitution seems to have an effect on these group of

HOMO LUMO

TCF1

HOMO LUMO

TCF8

compounds since TCF5, TCF 7 and TCF 9 have very close oxydation potentials and this phenomenom

is also observed between TCF10 and TCF4, which are ortho and para substitued dyes (See Figure 10).

-1 0 1 2

-1

0

1 TCF6

I (µ

A)

Ewe/V (vs Ag wire)

-1 0 1 2

-4

-2

0

2

4

TCF13

I (µ

A)

Ewe/V (vs Ag wire)

-1 0 1 2

-2

-1

0

1

2

3

TCF4

I (µ

A)

Ewe/V (vs Ag wire)

-1 0 1 2

-6

0

6 TCF10

I (µ

A)

Ewe/V (vs Ag wire)

Figure 10. Comparaisons between the cyclic voltammograms of TCF13/TCF6 (left) and TCF10/TCF4

(right) measured in dichloromethane scan rate 100 mV·s-1, with tetrabutylammonium perchlorate

(TBAP) (0.1 M) as the supporting electrolyte.

Table 5. Electrochemical characteristics of studied compounds TCF1-TCF13.

Ered

Ered

onset EOx

Eox

onset EOx EOx EHOMO ELUMO ΔEET ΔEopt

V/Fc V/Fc V/Fc V/Fc V/Fc V/Fc eV eV eV eV

TCF10 -1.05 -0.98 1.39 1.27 - - -6.07 -3.81 2.26 2.71

TCF4 -1.11 -1.03 1.24 1.15 - - -5.95 -3.77 2.18 2.71

TCF7 -1.15 -1.06 1.04 0.94 - - -5.74 -3.74 2.00 2.57

TCF9 -1.11 -1.02 1.02 0.92 - - -5.72 -3.78 1.94 2.62

TCF5 -1.13 -1.06 1.06 0.87 - - -5.67 -3.74 1.93 2.62

TCF13 -1.04 -0.96 1.10 0.84 - - -5.64 -3.84 1.80 2.41

TCF1 -1.03 -1.33 0.91 0.81 0.99 1.15 -5.61 -3.47 2.14 2.42

TCF11 -1.06 -0.99 0.73 0.64 - - -5.44 -3.81 1.63 2.27

TCF12 -1.09 -1.02 0.66 0.58 - - -5.38 -3.78 1.60 2.20

TCF8 -1.13 -1.04 0.64 0.55 - - -5.35 -3.76 1.60 2.20

TCF2 -1.16 -1.10 0.56 0.43 - - -5.23 -3.70 1.53 2.15

TCF3 -1.27 -1.19 0.52 0.43 - - -5.23 -3.61 1.61 2.09

TCF6 -1.13 -1.05 0.37 0.29 0.56 0.66 -5.09 -3.74 1.35 1.83

All potentials recorded in 0.1M TBAP/dichloromethane. EHOMO (eV) = - 4.8 – Eox onset and ELUMO (eV) =

-4.8 – Ered onset

A second group composed of triphenylamine with close oxydation potentials is also identified

(TCF8, TCF11 and TCF12), proving an oxydation process located on the nitrogen atom of the TPA

moiety. As they are better donor groups, they exhibit lower oxydation values, what is consistent with

the optical data.

Finaly, the lowest oxydation potentials are all observed for dyes with an amine group in para

position of the phenyl ring but also with a π-conjugated spacer between the donor and the acceptor.

Among this group, we can detect the oxidation of the amine around 0.43V for TCF2 and TCF3 which is

not observed in the case of TCF6, which exhibit an even better electron-donating moiety and for which

an oxidation is detected at 0.29 V. This oxidation process is certainly centered on the double bond of the

π-conjugated system separating the donor from the acceptor. Formation of the radical cation on the

vinyl spacer of push-pull dyes is in agreement with results previously reported in the literature for dyes

based on Michler’s aldehyde D6 but also with the theoretical results obtained by DFT calculations and

the experiment results determined by UV-visible absorption spectroscopy.[39] It has to be noticed that

more electrochemical processes can be detected in the cyclic voltammogram of TCF6 compared to all

the other dyes. Indeed, due to the presence of the elongated π-conjugated vinylic spacer, dimerization

of the cation radical formed by oxidation of the vinylic spacer can occur, complexifying the

voltammogram, in oxidation and in reduction.[90] To illustrate this, oxidation peaks at 0.37, 0.56 and

0.66V were detected at anodic potentials. Especially, dimerization is facilitated by the presence of the

strong electron donors, namely dimethylanilines. A similarity of the anodic part of the cyclic

voltammogram of TCF6 with that previously reported in the literature for Michler’s aldehyde-based

dyes can be clearly evidenced, supporting the dimerization of the cation radical.[52] Conversely, in

TCF13, dimerization of the cation radicals is not observed due to the presence of the weak

methoxybenzene electron donor, adversely affecting radicals recombination.

Set apart these three main groups, TCF1 and TCF13 differs from the other dyes by their electron

donors. Notably, TCF1 comprises a carbazole acting as a remarkable electron donor whereas TCF13

comprises an extended donor D13 of weaker electron donating ability than D6. While comparing TCF1

and TCF13 with the other dyes, their oxydation potentials are still lower than that of all the OMe-based

compounds but remains greater than that determined for the TPA-based dyes and the dyes based on

the dimethylaniline donors.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13-8

-7

-6

-5

-4

-3

-2

-1

En

erg

y L

ev

els

(e

V)

HOMO-DFT

LUMO-DFT

HOMO-CV

LUMO-CV

Compounds TCFx (x=1-13)

Figure 11. Comparison of frontier orbitals’ energy levels obtained from cyclic voltammetry and DFT

calculation.

Furthermore, the HOMO and LUMO energy levels of all the molecules in this study were

estimated from redox behaviors using the value of the ferrocene ionization potential as the standard

(4.8 eV vs vacuum). This correction factor is based on calculations obtained by Pommerehne et al.[91]

These values are summarized in Table 5 and a comparison between the values obtained experimentally

and theoretically is presented in Figure 11. A good agreement between the experimental and the

theoretical results are obtained. Especially, a between adequation between the theoretical and the

experimental values of the LUMO level that for the HOMO level was found for all dyes.

4. Conclusions

In this study, a series of thirteen dyes comprising the TCF group were synthesized and their

photophysical properties were analyzed. The change of the electron donor fragment allows a shift of

the maximum absorption towards the near infrared by using Michler's aldehyde as electron donor

compared to a donor comprising alkoxy chains on phenyl. The solvatochromism of all the dyes was

found to be linear and positive, inducing a redistribution of the large charges during excitation. It has

been determined that the experimental and theoretical HOMO-LUMO gaps showed a good correlation.

Among the most interesting findings of this work, TCF6 is the second TCF-based dye exhibiting the

most redshifted absorption after AH25 for push-pull dyes exhibiting a donor-spacer-acceptor structure.

Parallel to this, ICT band of TCF6 also showed an exceptional solvatochromic shift as high as 120 nm

from cyclohexane to DMSO, making TCF6, the most solvatochromic dye ever prepared with the

Michler’s aldehyde.

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Aix Marseille University and The Centre National de la Recherche (CNRS) for

financial supports. The Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR agency) is acknowledged for its

financial support through the PhD grants of Corentin Pigot (ANR-17-CE08-0010 DUALITY project) and

Guillaume Noirbent (ANR-17-CE08-0054 VISICAT project).

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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