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Panchromatic photochromic push-pull dyes featuring a ferrocene donor group.

Diego Mirani¹, Antonio J Riquelme¹, Samuel Fauvel¹

¹Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CEA, CNRS, Gre-INP, IRIG-SyMMES 38000 Grenoble France renaud.demadrille@cea.fr.

Materials Chemistry Frontiers

|August 18, 2025

Summary

Researchers developed new photochromic dyes with broad, panchromatic absorption by incorporating ferrocene into diphenyl-naphthopyran structures. These novel dyes enable neutral coloration for applications like smart windows and function as photosensitizers in solar cells.

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Published on: June 10, 2021

Area of Science:

Materials Science
Organic Chemistry
Photochemistry

Background:

Photochromic molecules undergo reversible structural changes upon light exposure, enabling applications in smart materials and optical devices.
Diphenyl-naphthopyrans offer tunable properties but are limited by narrow visible spectrum absorption, hindering neutral coloration applications.

Purpose of the Study:

To engineer novel photochromic dyes with wide, panchromatic absorption for improved coloration.
To investigate structural modifications for enhanced optical and photochromic properties.

Main Methods:

Synthesized five new push-pull photochromic dyes by replacing phenyl units with ferrocene and adding acceptor groups.
Characterized optical, electrochemical, and photochromic properties in solution and solid states.
Grafted dyes onto metal oxide surfaces and dispersed them in polymer matrices.

Main Results:

Achieved novel push-pull photochromic dyes with broad, panchromatic absorption.
Demonstrated effective production of panchromatic photochromic coatings.
Identified compounds acting as efficient photosensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs).

Conclusions:

Structural modification of diphenyl-naphthopyrans with ferrocene and acceptor groups yields dyes with wide absorption spectra.
These novel dyes are suitable for panchromatic photochromic coatings and have potential in energy applications like DSSCs.