This contribution reports on the synthesis and the photochemical behavior of two new sulfonium-based photoacid generators (PAGs). We demonstrate that a para-to-meta substitution of a methyl (p-cyanobenzyl) sulfonium group in a 4-alkoxystilbene core strongly influences the photodissociation efficiency of the PAGs and leads to an increase of the quantum yield for acid generation by a factor 2.4. This substantial effect, which was also corroborated by a reactivity enhancement in cationic photopolymerization, is assigned to the modulation of the electronic interaction between two low lying excited states whose energy gap is strongly influenced by this substitution effect. Moreover, it was found that the position of the sulfonium moiety hardly affects the two-photon absorption properties of these push−pull chromophores. By the two-photon fabrication of microstructures, we finally show the potential use of the meta derivative as cationic two-photon initiator.

Noncentrosymmetric molecules with a π-conjugated system and, among them, push-pull molecules such as pyridinium phenoxide, are a promising new class of materials for applications in optoelectronics due to their nonlinear optical (NLO) properties. Modelling studies have indicated that an increase in the twist angle between the two aromatic rings leads to an enhancement of the NLO properties. In order to

A series of pyridinium phenoxides that differ by the dihedral angle between the pyridinium and the phenoxide rings because of substituents with increasing steric encumbrance has been investigated by ultrafast spectroscopy. Like the related betaine-30, these molecules are characterised by a zwitterionic electronic ground state and a weakly polar S(1) state. Their fluorescence lifetime was found to lie between 200 to 750 fs, decreasing with increasing dihedral angle, and increasing with solvent viscosity. This was assigned to a non-radiative deactivation of the emissive state coupled to a large amplitude motion involving the dihedral angle. The transient absorption spectra suggested that emission occurs from the Franck-Condon S(1) state, which decays to a dark excited state, that itself most probably corresponds to the relaxed S(1) state. Finally, this relaxed state decays to the vibrationally hot ground state through an intramolecular charge separation process with a time constant ranging between 0.4 and 3 ps, increasing with the dihedral angle and with the solvent relaxation time. These variations were discussed in terms of the Jortner-Bixon model of electron transfer, where the charge separation dynamics depends on both electronic coupling and solvent relaxation. The results suggested that charge separation slows down with increasing dihedral angle.