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Title: Resolving orbital pathways for intermolecular electron transfer

Journal Article · · Nature Communications

Over 60 years have passed since Taube deduced an orbital-mediated electron transfer mechanism between distinct metal complexes. This concept of an orbital pathway has been thoroughly explored for donor–acceptor pairs bridged by covalently bonded chemical residues, but an analogous pathway has not yet been conclusively demonstrated for formally outer-sphere systems that lack an intervening bridge. In our present study, we experimentally resolve at an atomic level the orbital interactions necessary for electron transfer through an explicit intermolecular bond. This finding was achieved using a homologous series of surface-immobilized ruthenium catalysts that bear different terminal substituents poised for reaction with redox active species in solution. This arrangement enabled the discovery that intermolecular chalcogen···iodide interactions can mediate electron transfer only when these interactions bring the donor and acceptor orbitals into direct contact. This result offers the most direct observation to date of an intermolecular orbital pathway for electron transfer.

Research Organization:
Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0013461
OSTI ID:
1611987
Journal Information:
Nature Communications, Journal Name: Nature Communications Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 9; ISSN 2041-1723
Publisher:
Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Evidence for Interfacial Halogen Bonding journal April 2016
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Role of the bridging ligand in inner-sphere electron-transfer reactions journal August 1975
The Electronic Couplings in Electron Transfer and Excitation Energy Transfer journal April 2009
Characteristics of the Iodide/Triiodide Redox Mediator in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells journal November 2009
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Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer journal April 2012
Organoselenium Chemistry: Role of Intramolecular Interactions journal July 2010
Ultrafast Estimation of Electronic Couplings for Electron Transfer between π-Conjugated Organic Molecules journal September 2014
Donor-acceptor electronic coupling as a function of bridging group: mixed-valence diruthenium(II,III) complexes bridged by isonicotinato and isonicotinamido ligands journal June 1992
Enhanced Spectral Sensitivity from Ruthenium(II) Polypyridyl Based Photovoltaic Devices journal December 1994
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Rate of electron exchange between iron, ruthenium, and osmium complexes containing 1,10-phenanthroline, 2,2'-bipyridyl, or their derivatives from nuclear magnetic resonance studies journal November 1978
Electronic interactions in mixed-valence molecules as mediated by organic bridging groups journal January 1983
OBSERVATIONS ON THE MECHANISM OF ELECTRON TRANSFER IN SOLUTION 1 journal August 1953
Continuum of Outer- and Inner-Sphere Mechanisms for Organic Electron Transfer. Steric Modulation of the Precursor Complex in Paramagnetic (Ion-Radical) Self-Exchanges journal March 2007
Atomic Level Resolution of Dye Regeneration in the Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell journal January 2013
Chalcogen Bonding in Solution: Interactions of Benzotelluradiazoles with Anionic and Uncharged Lewis Bases journal March 2015
Structure/Function Relationships in Dyes for Solar Energy Conversion: A Two-Atom Change in Dye Structure and the Mechanism for Its Effect on Cell Voltage journal March 2009
Comparative PCET Study of a Donor−Acceptor Pair Linked by Ionized and Nonionized Asymmetric Hydrogen-Bonded Interfaces journal June 2009
Electronic Coupling in C-Clamp-Shaped Molecules:  Solvent-Mediated Superexchange Pathways journal January 1996
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Redox Active Ion-Paired Excited States Undergo Dynamic Electron Transfer journal December 2016
Chalcogen Bonding Macrocycles and [2]Rotaxanes for Anion Recognition journal February 2017
Chloride Oxidation by Ruthenium Excited-States in Solution journal September 2017
Time-Resolved Kinetic Study of the Electron-Transfer Reactions between Ring-Substituted Cumyloxyl Radicals and Alkylferrocenes. Evidence for an Inner-Sphere Mechanism journal March 2011
The Role Played by Orbital Energetics in Solvent Mediated Electronic Coupling journal March 2002
Quantifying Regeneration in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells journal December 2010
Direct Spectroscopic Evidence for Constituent Heteroatoms Enhancing Charge Recombination at a TiO 2 −Ruthenium Dye Interface journal May 2014
A Study of the Interactions between I /I 3 Redox Mediators and Organometallic Sensitizing Dyes in Solar Cells journal December 2008
Iodide Chemistry in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells: Making and Breaking I−I Bonds for Solar Energy Conversion journal October 2010
Photomodulated Voltammetry of Iodide/Triiodide Redox Electrolytes and Its Relevance to Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells journal November 2011
Photoinduced electron transfer across molecular bridges: electron- and hole-transfer superexchange pathways journal January 2014
Quantum-chemical insights into mixed-valence systems: within and beyond the Robin–Day scheme journal January 2014
From charge transfer to electron transfer in halogen-bonded complexes of electrophilic bromocarbons with halide anions journal January 2015
Recent advances in dye-sensitized photoelectrochemical cells for solar hydrogen production based on molecular components journal January 2015
An aqueous, organic dye derivatized SnO 2 /TiO 2 core/shell photoanode journal January 2016
Electron-transfer reactions of halogenated electrophiles: a different look into the nature of halogen bonding journal January 2017
Revisiting electronic couplings and incoherent hopping models for electron transport in crystalline C60 at ambient temperatures journal January 2012
The role of inner-sphere configuration changes in electron-exchange reactions of metal complexes journal January 1982
Non-symmetrical dielectric relaxation behaviour arising from a simple empirical decay function journal January 1970
Formulas and Numerical Tables for Overlap Integrals journal December 1949
Detailed comparison of the Williams–Watts and Cole–Davidson functions journal October 1980
Electronic couplings for molecular charge transfer: Benchmarking CDFT, FODFT, and FODFTB against high-level ab initio calculations journal March 2014
The Nature of Aqueous Tunneling Pathways Between Electron-Transfer Proteins journal November 2005
Merging Photoredox Catalysis with Organocatalysis: The Direct Asymmetric Alkylation of Aldehydes journal October 2008
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Direct evaluation of electronic coupling mediated by hydrogen bonds: implications for biological electron transfer journal September 1995
Pathway Analysis of Protein Electron-Transfer Reactions journal June 1992
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