Synthesis and Examination of the Properties of Donor Acceptor Stenhouse adducts

For the past thirty years research on photochromism has primarily focused on tailoring known systems to specific applications. While these works have led to diverse applications, identification of novel photochromic architectures has the potential to broaden the capacity and applications of photochromism. Recently a new class of organic photochromes, Donor Acceptor Stenhouse adducts (DASA), was identified, exhibiting properties that are unique and complementary to known photochromic compounds. This research focuses on our work towards tuning the properties of these new compounds by extending conjugation.  Current studies have focused on optimizing reaction conditions for the synthesis of these derivatives. Initial data on the photophysical properties of the obtained derivatives will be presented. Ultimately photodynamic data collected on these derivatives will enable promising applications.