Abstract
In this review, a family of new bistable copper complexes has been rationally assembled from the basic components, which undergoes the coordination isomerization by rotation of coordinated asymmetric pyrimidines. The key feature of these compounds is that the driving force of electron transfer is acquired through the coordination isomerization, whose dynamics can be controlled by a steric factor around the rotor. The simple basic structure of our systems allows us to construct a multi-centered redox scaffold, in which an intramolecular electron transfer by the rotational motion propagates electron rearrangement within a molecular or emergence of valence tautomerization. Furthermore, the light-driven rotation has been achieved through a photoelectron transfer process by modifying the complex structure so as to make an efficient use of excitation energy.
Our systems provide an additional guide for design of molecular responsive materials, which spans molecular machines based on their electronic bistability. From our study, we emphasize that the simple molecular motion can induce a significant response when it is placed in an effective field such as coordination spheres, and functions via the total control in dynamics.
