Diarylethene as a photoswitching unit

Abstract

Photochromic compounds reversibly change not only the absorption spectra but also their geometrical and electronic structures. The molecular structure changes induce physical property changes of the molecules such as fluorescence, refractive index, polarizability, electrical conductivity, and magnetism. In this review, among the physical properties that can be photoswitched by using diarylethenes as a photoswitching unit, fluorescence, electrical conductivity, and magnetism are featured.