Excimer complexes

Complex formation is important in photophysics. Two terms need to be described here first, an exciplex, which is an excited state complex formed between two different kinds of molecules, one that is excited and the other that is in its grown state second, an excimer, which is similar to exciplex except that the complex is formed between like molecules. Here, we will focus on excimer complexes that form between two like polymer chains or within the same polymer chain. Such complexes are often formed between two aromatic structures. Resonance interactions between aromatic structures, such as two phenyl rings in PS, give a weak intermolecular force formed from attractions between the pi-electrons of the two aromatic entities. Excimers involving such aromatic structures give strong fluorescence. 

Our motivation for offering a further consideration of excimer fluorescence is that it is a significant feature of the luminescence behavior of virtually all aryl vinyl polymers. Although early research was almost entirely devoted to understanding the intrinsic properties of the excimer complex, more recent efforts have been directed at application of the phenomenon to solution of problems in polymer physics and chemistry. Thus, it seems an appropriate time to evaluate existing information about the photophysical processes and structural considerations which may influence excimer formation and stability. This should help clarify both the power and limitations of the excimer as a molecular probe of polymer structure and dynamics. 

On the other hand, pyrenyl-L-alanine 184 has also been used as a conformational probe in the characterization of an artificial 4-a-helix bundle protein.11,121 The 53-residue peptide 186 incorporating one residue of 184 in each of two different helical segments was synthesized by solid-phase synthesis using a segment condensation strategy and the oxime resin. Boc-pyrenyl-L-alanine 191 was coupled just like any other amino acid by the BOP/HOBt method in DMF. CD and fluorescence studies demonstrated that the two pyrene groups were in close proximity forming an excimer complex, which is possible only when the polypeptide chain folds into a 4-a-helix bundle structure. 

So far we have assumed that the overlap between the molecular orbitals of the two molecules is negligible in an excimer complex. At short distances, say rP... P < 300 pm, orbital overlap leads to further stabilization of an excimer. As can be seen from Figure 2.25, first-order perturbation of the degenerate orbitals (Section 4.3) due to... 

The low quantum yields in planar conjugated PHT can be explained by classical concentration quenching effects which arise from non-emissive excimer complexes intermolecular decay channels) [100],... 

Reported in 1995, compound 139 provides an example of a fluorescent PET sensor with clear compartmentalisation of the receptor, linker and fluorophore sub-units. Documented by Sandanayake, James and Shinkai, it was found that the stoichiometry of saccharide binding with sensor 139 i.e. 1 1 or 2 1 saccharide/sensor) could be correlated with a decrease in the fluorescence emission due to the excited state dimer (excimer) complex formed between the two pyrene residues, see Scheme 36 broad peak 470 nm. Moreover, the saccharide concentration could be monitored via the usual increase in fluorescence emission intensity from the LE state of pyrene as a function of PET, see Scheme 36 peaks at 370, 397 and 417 nm. The observed stability constants ( obs) for 139 were 2000 with D-glucose and 790 M with o-galactose in 33 wt% methanol in water. ... 

The excimer and monomer emission bands are well separated, which reflects a large stabilization energy of the excimer complex. An iso-emissive point is detected near 500 nm even at relatively high tempera-... 

An Xc2 excimer laser has been made to operate in this way, but of much greater importance are the noble gas halide lasers. These halides also have repulsive ground states and bound excited states they are examples of exciplexes. An exciplex is a complex consisting, in a diatomic molecule, of two different atoms, which is stable in an excited electronic state but dissociates readily in the ground state. In spite of this clear distinction between an excimer and an exciplex it is now common for all such lasers to be called excimer lasers. 

The excimer emission occurs from an excited associated complex (D ) formed between a species in the excited singlet state (5 ) and a similar ground-state (So) species. The excimer is also called a dimer and is shortlived. 

A and D are the exciplex or excimer components, denotes the primarily excited species, k is the limiting photoassociation equilibrium constant, AHat ASa, and are the thermodynamic parameters for the exciplex-excimer, and p is the excited state dipole moment of the complex. Note that the large dipole moment for the exciplex indicates almost complete charge transfer in the excited state, (D+, A-). rfc and r, are the fluorescence lifetimes for the complex and the component. 

The stereospecificity of these reactions is surprising in light of the large energies absorbpd by these molecules. Indeed, the major photochemical product of these photolyses was the alternate olefin isomer (1-butene was also observed). These results indicate that free rotation about the photo-excited double bond does not occur in those molecules that dimerize. This suggests the participation of ground state complexes or excimers in the photodimerization. This view is supported by the observations that dilution of cw-2-butene with neopentane (1 1) decreased the yield of dimers and a 1 4 dilution almost completely suppressed dimerization. 

There are many possibilities to use these complex formations in fluorescence sensing. If the excimer is not formed, we observe emission of the monomer only, and upon its formation there appears characteristic emission of the excimer. We just need to make a sensor, in which its free and target-bound forms differ in the ability of reporter dye to form excimers and the fluorescence spectra will report on the sensing event. Since we will observe transition between two spectroscopic forms, the analyte binding will result in increase in intensity of one of the forms and decrease of the other form with the observation of isoemissive point [22]. 

Yang CJ, Jockusch S, Vicens M, Turro NJ, Tan W (2005) Light-switching excimer probes for rapid protein monitoring in complex biological fluids. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 102 17278-17283... 

Excimers and exciplexes are formed in the excited states. Excimers are complexes of excited 1M and unexcited 1M molecules in the excited state ... 

Different aromatic hydrocarbons (naphthalene, pyrene and some others) can form excimers, and these reactions are accompanying by an appearance of the second emission band shifted to the red-edge of the spectrum. Pyrene in cyclohexane (CH) at small concentrations 10-5-10-4 M has structured vibronic emission band near 430 nm. With the growth of concentration, the second smooth fluorescence band appears near 480 nm, and the intensity of this band increases with the pyrene concentration. At high pyrene concentration of 10 2 M, this band belonging to excimers dominates in the spectrum. After the act of emission, excimers disintegrate into two molecules as the ground state of such complex is unstable. 

Exciplexes are complexes of the excited fluorophore molecule (which can be electron donor or acceptor) with the solvent molecule. Like many bimolecular processes, the formation of excimers and exciplexes are diffusion controlled processes. The fluorescence of these complexes is detected at relatively high concentrations of excited species, so a sufficient number of contacts should occur during the excited state lifetime and, hence, the characteristics of the dual emission depend strongly on the temperature and viscosity of solvents. A well-known example of exciplex is an excited state complex of anthracene and /V,/V-diethylaniline resulting from the transfer of an electron from an amine molecule to an excited anthracene. Molecules of anthracene in toluene fluoresce at 400 nm with contour having vibronic structure. An addition to the same solution of diethylaniline reveals quenching of anthracene accompanied by appearance of a broad, structureless fluorescence band of the exciplex near 500 nm (Fig. 2 )... 

Oxygen radical anion forms excited-singlet oxygen in different pathways, e.g. by a reaction with copper-cysteine-oxygen complex to yield the excimer (02)2- The computerized kinetic equations derived from this scheme allowed predictions in respect of the chemiluminescence intensity as a function of the oxygen and cysteine concentrations and as a function of time these were satisfactorily confirmed by the ex-... 

A. Weller and K. Zachariasse 157-160) thoroughly investigated this radical-ion reaction, starting from the observation that the fluorescence of aromatic hydrocarbons is quenched very efficiently by electron donors such as N,N diethylaniline which results in a new, red-shifted emission in nonpolar solvents This emission was ascribed to an excited charge-transfer complex 1(ArDD(H )), designated heteroexcimer, with a dipole moment of 10D. In polar solvents, however, quenching of aromatic hydrocarbon fluorescence by diethylaniline is not accompanied by hetero-excimer emission in this case the free radical anions Ar<7> and cations D were formed. 

CDs can form complexes with stoichiometries different from 1 1. Stopped-flow experiments were employed to study the binding dynamics of a 2 2 complex between pyrene and y-CD.196 Both, 1 1 and 2 2 complexes are formed and the 2 2 complex exhibits excimer-like emission. The association rate constant for the 2 2 complex was found to be 6 x 107M-1 s-1, while the dissociation rate constant was 73 s-1. These values correspond to a decrease of up to 5 orders of magnitude when compared to the dynamics for the 1 1 complex. 

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