Structural dynamics of overcrowded alkene-based molecular motors during thermal isomerization

Synthetic light-driven rotary molecular motors show complicated structural dynamics during the rotation process. A combination of DFT calculations and various spectroscopic techniques is employed to study the effect of the bridging group in the lower half of the molecule on the conformational dynamics. It was found that the extent to which the bridging group can accommodate the increased folding in the transition state is the main factor in rationalizing the differences in barrier height and, as a consequence, the rotary speed. These findings will be essential in designing future rotary molecular motors.