All-visible-light-driven salicylidene schiff-base-functionalized artificial molecular motors

• Published in: Nature communications 2024-07, Vol.15 (1), p.6461-11, Article 6461
• Main Authors: van Vliet, Sven, Sheng, Jinyu, Stindt, Charlotte N., Feringa, Ben L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 140/131; 639/638/403; 639/638/439; Catalysis; Chemical synthesis; Chirality; Dynamical systems; Humanities and Social Sciences; Imines; Light; Luminescence; Molecular machines; Molecular motors; multidisciplinary; Photoluminescence; Photons; Rotating machinery; Science; Science (multidisciplinary)
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-50587-4

Light-driven rotary molecular motors are among the most promising classes of responsive molecular machines and take advantage of their intrinsic chirality which governs unidirectional rotation. As a consequence of their dynamic function, they receive considerable interest in the areas of supramolecular chemistry, asymmetric catalysis and responsive materials. Among the emerging classes of responsive photochromic molecules, multistate first-generation molecular motors driven by benign visible light remain unexplored, which limits the exploitation of the full potential of these mechanical light-powered systems. Herein, we describe a series of all-visible-light-driven first-generation molecular motors based on the salicylidene Schiff base functionality. Remarkable redshifts up to 100 nm in absorption are achieved compared to conventional first-generation motor structures. Taking advantage of all-visible-light-driven multistate motor scaffolds, adaptive behaviour is found as well, and potential application in multistate photoluminescence is demonstrated. These functional visible-light-responsive motors will likely stimulate the design and synthesis of more sophisticated nanomachinery with a myriad of future applications in powering dynamic systems. First-generation light-driven rotary molecular motors received considerable interest in various areas of chemistry, but those driven by benign visible light remain less explored. Here the authors describe all-visible-light-driven first-generation molecular motors which show an adaptive behaviour and explore application in multistate photoluminescence.