Chapter 3
Quantum Dot and Fullerene
with Organic Chromophores
as Electron-Donor-Acceptor Systems
Danuta Wróbel and Bolesław Barszcz
Abstract This review paper is focused on the research of molecular mechanisms
occurring in porphyrin-like systems such as porphyrins, phthalocyanines, and
corroles as well as in chromophore-semiconductor quantum dot (QD-CdSe/ZnS) or
corrole-fullerene (C 60 ) as electron-donor-acceptor unites. The basic spectroscopic
investigations describe properties of materials in organic solutions in the ultraviolet,
visible, and infrared ranges and in a form of Langmuir and Langmuir–Blodgett
molecular nanolayers to get knowledge on photophysics of dyes and the influence
of QD and C 60 on the electron redistribution within the molecular structures. The
studies also allowed to explain the impact of solvent on the spectroscopic properties
of corroles and on the redistribution of the p-electrons in the excited state. The
fluorescence studies very evidently showed strong interaction between chromophores and C 60 or QD and clearly demonstrated the strong donor-acceptor nature
of the phthalocyanines-quantum dot and the corrole-fullerene dyad. In addition,
spectroscopic studies in polarized light allowed determining molecular arrangement
of the chromophore molecules in the Langmuir–Blodgett layers with respect to
solid substrates. The computer calculations (TD-DFT theory) confirmed the
experimental results, in particular the redistribution of the p-electrons in the excited
state and the location of HOMO and LUMO levels. The DFT calculations let also to
evaluate the reorganization energy values for the set of free-base corroles and C 60
fullerene. In this review, it was shown the electron-donor-acceptor character of the
systems composed of: porphyrin-quinone, phthalocyanines-QD, corroles-C 60
dyads. It has been demonstrated potential capabilities of the photoactive organic
materials with QD and fullerene in the future applications in many areas of optoelectronic and in the process of converting solar energy into electric energy in solar
cells.
D. Wróbel (&) Á B. Barszcz
Faculty of Technical Physics, Institute of Physics, Poznan University
of Technology, Poznań, Poland
e-mail: danuta.wrobel@put.poznan.pl
B. Barszcz
Institute of Molecular Physics Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznań, Poland
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019
A. Koleżyński and M. Król (eds.), Molecular Spectroscopy—Experiment
and Theory, Challenges and Advances in Computational Chemistry
and Physics 26, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01355-4_3
97
Quantum Dot and Fullerene
with Organic Chromophores
as Electron-Donor-Acceptor Systems
Danuta Wróbel and Bolesław Barszcz
Abstract This review paper is focused on the research of molecular mechanisms
occurring in porphyrin-like systems such as porphyrins, phthalocyanines, and
corroles as well as in chromophore-semiconductor quantum dot (QD-CdSe/ZnS) or
corrole-fullerene (C 60 ) as electron-donor-acceptor unites. The basic spectroscopic
investigations describe properties of materials in organic solutions in the ultraviolet,
visible, and infrared ranges and in a form of Langmuir and Langmuir–Blodgett
molecular nanolayers to get knowledge on photophysics of dyes and the influence
of QD and C 60 on the electron redistribution within the molecular structures. The
studies also allowed to explain the impact of solvent on the spectroscopic properties
of corroles and on the redistribution of the p-electrons in the excited state. The
fluorescence studies very evidently showed strong interaction between chromophores and C 60 or QD and clearly demonstrated the strong donor-acceptor nature
of the phthalocyanines-quantum dot and the corrole-fullerene dyad. In addition,
spectroscopic studies in polarized light allowed determining molecular arrangement
of the chromophore molecules in the Langmuir–Blodgett layers with respect to
solid substrates. The computer calculations (TD-DFT theory) confirmed the
experimental results, in particular the redistribution of the p-electrons in the excited
state and the location of HOMO and LUMO levels. The DFT calculations let also to
evaluate the reorganization energy values for the set of free-base corroles and C 60
fullerene. In this review, it was shown the electron-donor-acceptor character of the
systems composed of: porphyrin-quinone, phthalocyanines-QD, corroles-C 60
dyads. It has been demonstrated potential capabilities of the photoactive organic
materials with QD and fullerene in the future applications in many areas of optoelectronic and in the process of converting solar energy into electric energy in solar
cells.
D. Wróbel (&) Á B. Barszcz
Faculty of Technical Physics, Institute of Physics, Poznan University
of Technology, Poznań, Poland
e-mail: danuta.wrobel@put.poznan.pl
B. Barszcz
Institute of Molecular Physics Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznań, Poland
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019
A. Koleżyński and M. Król (eds.), Molecular Spectroscopy—Experiment
and Theory, Challenges and Advances in Computational Chemistry
and Physics 26, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-01355-4_3
97