DOE PAGES title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Long-Lived Excited State in a Solubilized Graphene Nanoribbon

Journal Article · · Journal of Physical Chemistry. C
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [3]; ORCiD logo [4]; ORCiD logo [3]; ORCiD logo [2]; ORCiD logo [1]
  1. Univ. of Illinois, Chicago, IL (United States); Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
  2. Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL (United States)
  3. Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States)
  4. SLAC National Accelerator Lab., Menlo Park, CA (United States). Photon Ultrafast Laser Science and Engineering Inst. (PULSE)

Graphene nanoribbons have excellent light-absorbing properties, but often exhibit short excited-state lifetimes that prevent their applications in photocatalysis. Here, we report a long-lived charge-transfer triplet excited state in a well solubilized, chlorinated graphene nanoribbon (Cl-GNR) with edges modified by bipyrimidine (bpm) moieties. The photophysical behavior of Cl-GNR was observed and characterized by steady-state UV-vis absorption and emission spectroscopy, transient absorption spectroscopy on the ps-ms timescale, and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. In this work, both the Cl-GNR and its monomeric subunit, chlorinated graphene quantum dot (Cl-GQD), were synthesized using bottom-up techniques to produce the H- analogs of the compounds followed by edge-chlorination to achieve soluble products. The absorption spectra of Cl-GQD and Cl-GNR appear in the UV-vis range with lowest-energy peaks at 375 and 600 nm, respectively. The excitons in Cl-GNR were found to exhibit charge-transfer character with the bpm edges serving as electron acceptors. DFT calculations indicate that the excitons are relatively localized, spreading over at most two monomeric units of the GNR. Transient absorption spectroscopy shows that singlet excited states of Cl-GQD and Cl-GNR undergo intersystem crossing with ~300 ps lifetime to form triplet states that last for 15.7 μs (Cl-GQD) and 106 μs (Cl-GNR). These properties, combined with the ability of the bpm sites to coordinate transition metals, make Cl-GNRs promising light-harvesting motifs for photocatalytic applications.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
National Science Foundation (NSF); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Chemical Sciences, Geosciences & Biosciences Division
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-06CH11357
OSTI ID:
1877685
Journal Information:
Journal of Physical Chemistry. C, Journal Name: Journal of Physical Chemistry. C Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 126; ISSN 1932-7447
Publisher:
American Chemical SocietyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (73)

Polyphenylene Dendrimers: From Three-Dimensional to Two-Dimensional Structures journal April 1997
From Nanographene and Graphene Nanoribbons to Graphene Sheets: Chemical Synthesis journal July 2012
Annulative π-Extension (APEX): Rapid Access to Fused Arenes, Heteroarenes, and Nanographenes journal August 2017
Synthesis and Reactivity of Paramagnetic Nickel Polypyridyl Complexes Relevant to C(sp 2 )-C(sp 3 )Coupling Reactions journal March 2019
A Family of Superhelicenes: Easily Tunable, Chiral Nanographenes by Merging Helicity with Planar π Systems journal July 2021
Spin-orbit coupling and intersystem crossing in molecules: Spin-orbit coupling journal July 2011
Photophysics of nanographenes: from polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons to graphene nanoribbons journal May 2021
Intersystem crossing in the helicenes journal October 1975
Fluorescence from graphene nanoribbons of well-defined structure journal August 2017
Theoretical study of the size confinement effect in linear π-conjugated oligomers journal December 2007
Photophysical and Morphological Implications of Single-Strand Conjugated Polymer Folding in Solution journal April 2016
Iron Polypyridyl Complexes for Photocatalytic Hydrogen Generation journal August 2016
Photocatalytic CO 2 Reduction by Trigonal-Bipyramidal Cobalt(II) Polypyridyl Complexes: The Nature of Cobalt(I) and Cobalt(0) Complexes upon Their Reactions with CO 2 , CO, or Proton journal April 2018
Exciton Dynamics in J- and H-Aggregates of a Tricarbocyanine Near-Infrared Dye journal April 2021
Linear and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Graphene Quantum Dots: A Computational Study journal May 2015
Size-Dependent Electronic Properties of Uniform Ensembles of Strongly Confined Graphene Quantum Dots journal February 2019
Exciton Coherence Length and Dynamics in Graphene Quantum Dot Assemblies journal December 2019
Nitrogen-Doping Induced Self-Assembly of Graphene Nanoribbon-Based Two-Dimensional and Three-Dimensional Metamaterials journal August 2015
Experimental Observation of Strong Exciton Effects in Graphene Nanoribbons journal March 2020
Strong Electronic Coupling of Graphene Nanoribbons onto Basal Plane of a Glassy Carbon Electrode journal January 2021
Systematic Bandgap Engineering of Graphene Quantum Dots and Applications for Photocatalytic Water Splitting and CO 2 Reduction journal March 2018
van der Waals Heterojunction between a Bottom-Up Grown Doped Graphene Quantum Dot and Graphene for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting journal January 2020
Colloidal Graphene Quantum Dots with Well-Defined Structures journal November 2012
Redox and spectral properties of monooxo polypyridyl complexes of ruthenium and osmium in aqueous media journal June 1984
Controlled Self-Assembly of Hexa- p eri -hexabenzocoronenes in Solution journal September 2004
High Quality Dispersions of Hexabenzocoronene in Organic Solvents journal July 2012
Structurally Defined Graphene Nanoribbons with High Lateral Extension journal October 2012
Identification of Ultrafast Relaxation Processes As a Major Reason for Inefficient Exciton Diffusion in Perylene-Based Organic Semiconductors journal June 2014
Two-Dimensional Graphene Nanoribbons journal April 2008
Chemical Vapor Deposition Synthesis and Terahertz Photoconductivity of Low-Band-Gap N = 9 Armchair Graphene Nanoribbons journal March 2017
Direct Imaging of Exciton Transport in Tubular Porphyrin Aggregates by Ultrafast Microscopy journal May 2017
Role of Edge Engineering in Photoconductivity of Graphene Nanoribbons journal June 2017
Long-Lived Charge-Transfer States of Nickel(II) Aryl Halide Complexes Facilitate Bimolecular Photoinduced Electron Transfer journal February 2018
Bandgap Engineering of Graphene Nanoribbons by Control over Structural Distortion journal May 2018
Intrinsic Properties of Single Graphene Nanoribbons in Solution: Synthetic and Spectroscopic Studies journal August 2018
Optical Spectroscopy of Isolated and Aggregate Hexabenzocoronene Derivatives:  A Study of Self-Assembling Molecular Nanowires journal January 2003
Intersystem Crossing Processes in Nonplanar Aromatic Heterocyclic Molecules journal October 2007
Scaling of Excitons in Graphene Nanoribbons with Armchair Shaped Edges journal October 2011
Quasiparticle Energies and Optical Excitations in Chevron-Type Graphene Nanoribbon journal April 2012
Colloidal Graphene Quantum Dots journal August 2010
Ultrafast Exciton Self-Trapping upon Geometry Deformation in Perylene-Based Molecular Aggregates journal February 2013
Triplet States and Electronic Relaxation in Photoexcited Graphene Quantum Dots journal July 2010
Ultrafast Photoconductivity of Graphene Nanoribbons and Carbon Nanotubes journal November 2013
Bottom-Up Synthesis of Liquid-Phase-Processable Graphene Nanoribbons with Near-Infrared Absorption journal October 2014
Structurally uniform and atomically precise carbon nanostructures journal January 2016
Synthesis of structurally well-defined and liquid-phase-processable graphene nanoribbons journal December 2013
Gate-controlled electron transport in coronenes as a bottom-up approach towards graphene transistors journal June 2010
Exciton–exciton annihilation and biexciton stimulated emission in graphene nanoribbons journal March 2016
Oriented graphene nanoribbons embedded in hexagonal boron nitride trenches journal March 2017
Atomically precise edge chlorination of nanographenes and its application in graphene nanoribbons journal November 2013
Large-scale solution synthesis of narrow graphene nanoribbons journal February 2014
Exciton-dominated optical response of ultra-narrow graphene nanoribbons journal July 2014
Engineering triangular carbon quantum dots with unprecedented narrow bandwidth emission for multicolored LEDs journal June 2018
Sub-10-nm graphene nanoribbons with atomically smooth edges from squashed carbon nanotubes journal September 2021
Effects of conjugation length and resonance enhancement on two-photon absorption in phenylene–vinylene oligomers journal January 2008
Molecular polypyridine-based metal complexes as catalysts for the reduction of CO 2 journal January 2017
Excited state electron and energy relays in supramolecular dinuclear complexes revealed by ultrafast optical and X-ray transient absorption spectroscopy journal January 2018
Exciton and phonon dynamics in highly aligned 7-atom wide armchair graphene nanoribbons as seen by time-resolved spontaneous Raman scattering journal January 2018
Electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 to CO by polypyridyl ruthenium complexes journal January 2011
Natural population analysis journal July 1985
Correlation effects in the optical spectra of porphyrin oligomer chains: Exciton confinement and length dependence journal January 2013
Photophysics of graphene quantum dot assemblies with axially coordinated cobaloxime catalysts journal September 2020
Density-functional exchange-energy approximation with correct asymptotic behavior journal September 1988
Exciton analysis of many-body wave functions: Bridging the gap between the quasiparticle and molecular orbital pictures journal November 2014
Development of the Colle-Salvetti correlation-energy formula into a functional of the electron density journal January 1988
Tuning of energy levels and optical properties of graphene quantum dots journal June 2008
Energy Gaps in Graphene Nanoribbons journal November 2006
Self-Assembled Hexa-peri-hexabenzocoronene Graphitic Nanotube journal June 2004
Supramolecular Linear Heterojunction Composed of Graphite-Like Semiconducting Nanotubular Segments journal October 2011
Synthesis of partially and fully fused polyaromatics by annulative chlorophenylene dimerization journal January 2018
Experimental Observation of Strong Exciton Effects in Graphene Nanoribbons
  • Tries, Alexander; Ramanan, Charusheela; Wang, Hai I.
  • MPDL Keeper Service, Max-Planck-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Wissenschaften e. V. https://doi.org/10.17617/4.bh
dataset January 2020
Van der Waals Heterojunction between a Bottom-Up Grown Doped Graphene Quantum Dot and Graphene for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting dataset January 2021
Effects of Intra- and Interchain Interactions on Exciton Dynamics of PTB7 Revealed by Model Oligomers journal May 2020

Similar Records

Exciton–exciton annihilation and biexciton stimulated emission in graphene nanoribbons
Journal Article · 2016 · Nature Communications · OSTI ID:1255251

Inserting Porphyrin Quantum Dots in Bottom-Up Synthesized Graphene Nanoribbons
Journal Article · 2017 · Chemistry - A European Journal · OSTI ID:1461124

Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer in a Ruthenium(II) Bipyrimidine Complex in Its Ground and Excited Electronic States
Journal Article · 2022 · Journal of Physical Chemistry. A, Molecules, Spectroscopy, Kinetics, Environment, and General Theory · OSTI ID:1877688