美国加州大学圣塔芭芭拉分校Read de Alaniz, Javier团队开发了用于控制光开关响应的多级单光致变色系统。相关研究成果发表在2022年6月9日出版的《自然—化学》。

分子光开关将开/关响应转换为大规模宏观特性变化的能力是光响应材料的基础。然而，要超越简单的二元反应，就必须引入新的元素，在分子水平上控制光开关过程的化学。为了实现这一目标，研究人员设计、合成并开发了一种基于经修饰的施主-受主Stenhouse加合物（DASA）的单一光致变色剂，该加合物能够独立处理多个分子状态。多级光电开关可实现复杂的开关现象。

为了证明这一点，研究人员展示了三级光开关转换的空间控制，方法是沿着DASA的多步反应途径调节中间产物的数量，而不干扰第一或最后阶段。这允许光子三级逻辑门，其中次波长仅抵消主波长的输入。这些结果提供了一种超越传统开/关二元光致变色系统的新策略，并为未来分子逻辑系统的设计提供了可能。

附：英文原文

Title: A multi-stage single photochrome system for controlled photoswitching responses

Author: Stricker, Friedrich, Sanchez, David M., Raucci, Umberto, Dolinski, Neil D., Zayas, Manuel S., Meisner, Jan, Hawker, Craig. J., Martnez, Todd. J., Read de Alaniz, Javier

Issue&Volume: 2022-06-09

Abstract: The ability of molecular photoswitches to convert on/off responses into large macroscale property change is fundamental to light-responsive materials. However, moving beyond simple binary responses necessitates the introduction of new elements that control the chemistry of the photoswitching process at the molecular scale. To achieve this goal, we designed, synthesized and developed a single photochrome, based on a modified donor–acceptor Stenhouse adduct (DASA), capable of independently addressing multiple molecular states. The multi-stage photoswitch enables complex switching phenomena. To demonstrate this, we show spatial control of the transformation of a three-stage photoswitch by tuning the population of intermediates along the multi-step reaction pathway of the DASAs without interfering with either the first or final stage. This allows for a photonic three-stage logic gate where the secondary wavelength solely negates the input of the primary wavelength. These results provide a new strategy to move beyond traditional on/off binary photochromic systems and enable the design of future molecular logic systems.

DOI: 10.1038/s41557-022-00947-8

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41557-022-00947-8