Dresden 2011 – scientific programme

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MO: Fachverband Molekülphysik

MO 30: Poster: Photochemistry

MO 30.3: Poster

Thursday, March 17, 2011, 16:00–18:00, P1

Time resolved studies of spiropyrans in water — •Jörg Kohl-Landgraf, Josef Wachtveitl, Diana Gonçalves, and Alexander Heckel — Goethe-Universität Frankfurt a.M.

Spiropyrans, which consist of two orthogonal ring systems, are photochromic molecules that can be optically switched between two conformational states.

We focus on spiropyran derivatives with improved water solubility and the capability of binding to RNA fragments. This enables triggering RNA activity by simply inducing structural changes upon irradiating the photoswitch with a proper wavelength. Subsequently interaction with the photoswitch as well as its RNA dynamics taking place after excitation of the photoswitch will be studied by means of time resolved IR spectroscopy.

We present steady state observations and recent results maintained by femtosecond pump/probe spectroscopy in the visible and infrared spectral region. We show that the ring opening as well as the closing process is obtained in the low picosecond range. Furthermore we partially reveal the reaction pathway for the isomerization processes.