Rapid electron tunneling through oligophenylenevinylene bridges

We measured rate constants of thermal, interfacial electron transfer through oligophenylenevinylene bridges between a gold electrode and a tethered redox species in contact with an aqueous electrolyte using the indirect laser-induced temperature jump technique. Analysis of the distance dependence indicates that, unlike other bridges studied to date, the rate constants are not limited by electronic coupling for bridges up to 28 angstroms long. The energy levels of the bridges relative to those of the redox species rule out hopping through the bridge. We conclude that, out to 28 angstroms, the transfer is limited by structural reorganization and that electron tunneling occurs in less than 20 picoseconds, suggesting that oligophenylenevinylene bridges could be useful for wiring molecular electronic elements.