Abstract
Time-resolved (fs) spectroscopy allows the direct observation of charge-transfer ion pairs resulting from the photoexcitation of the electron donor−acceptor (EDA) complexes of tetracyanoethylene with various olefin donors, i.e., [olefin, TCNE], in dichloromethane solutions. Measurement of the spectral decays yields first-order rate constants for electron transfer (kET) in the collapse of the charge-transfer ion pairs [olefin•+, TCNE•-] by very rapid return to the ground-state EDA complex at 25 oC. [These ultrafast ET rates necessitated the design/construction of a new tunable, high-power pump−probe spectrometer based on a Ti:sapphire laser with 250-fs resolution.] The value of kET = 5 × 1011 s-1 is strikingly nonvariant for the different TCNE complexes despite large differences in the driving force for electron transfer (ΔG0), as evaluated from the varying ionization potentials of the olefins. Such a unique nonvariant trend for the free energy relationship (log kET versus ΔG0) is analyzed in terms of a dominant inner-sphere component to electron transfer. In a more general context, the inner-sphere (adiabatic) electron transfer in [olefin•+, TCNE•-] relates to a similar, but less pronounced, inner-sphere behavior noted in the analogous [arene•+, TCNE•-] radical-ion pairs. As such, these electron-transfer processes represent an extremum in the continuum of ET transition states based on the inner-sphere/outer-sphere dichotomy.
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call