Vectorial photoinduced electron transfer in alternating Langmuir–Blodgett films of phytochlorin–[60]fullerene dyad and regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) Original Research Article

Alternating Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) bilayer structures, consisting of a donor–acceptor (DA) layer of a phytochlorin–fullerene (PF) dyad and a layer of a regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (PHT) polymer were used to study interlayer vectorial photoinduced electron transfer (VPET). As the dyad PF undergoes, under light illumination, an intramolecular ET from the phytochlorin to the fullerene moiety an intralayer VPET takes place in the LB monolayer. When PF was deposited on the PHT layer and excited the second ET took place from the PHT layer to the phytochlorin cation. Thus the PHT layer can act as a secondary electron donor and accompany the primary photoinduced electron transfer in the PF layer by a spontaneous interlayer electron transfer. Important characteristic properties of the VPET bilayer are the longer distance of charge separation (CS) and the longer lifetime of the charge separated state (lifetime from microsecond to second) as compared to VPET of the PF monolayer alone (where the lifetime of CS state was ≈30 ns). The CT measurements were carried out for different molecular orientations and film structures. Models for the multistep photochemical reactions are discussed.