Aggregation of Charge Acceptors on Nanocrystal Surfaces Alters Rates of Photoinduced Electron Transfer.

Semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) interfaced with molecular ligands that function as charge and energy acceptors are an emerging platform for the design of light-harvesting, photon-upconverting, and photocatalytic materials. However, NC systems explored for these applications often feature high concentrations of bound acceptor ligands, which can lead to ligand-ligand interactions that may alter each system's ability to undergo charge and energy transfer. Here, we demonstrate that aggregation of acceptor ligands impacts the rate of photoinduced NC-to-ligand charge transfer between lead(II) sulfide (PbS) NCs and perylenediimide (PDI) electron acceptors.

Evaluating the Effect of Dye-Dye Interactions of Xanthene-Based Fluorophores in the Fluorosequencing of Peptides.

A peptide sequencing scheme utilizing fluorescence microscopy and Edman degradation to determine the amino acid position in fluorophore-labeled peptides was recently reported, referred to as fluorosequencing. It was observed that multiple fluorophores covalently linked to a peptide scaffold resulted in a decrease in the anticipated fluorescence output and worsened the single-molecule fluorescence analysis. In this study, we report an improvement in the photophysical properties of fluorophore-labeled peptides by incorporating long and flexible (PEG) linkers at the peptide attachment points.

Using Spectator Ligands to Enhance Nanocrystal-to-Molecule Electron Transfer.

Semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs) have emerged as promising photocatalysts. However, NCs are often functionalized with complex ligand shells that contain not only charge acceptors but also other "spectator ligands" that control NC solubility and affinity for target reactants. Here, we show that spectator ligands are not passive observers of photoinduced charge transfer but rather play an active role in this process.

Combination of two analytical techniques improves wine classification by Vineyard, Region, and vintage.

Three important wine parameters: vineyard, region, and vintage year, were evaluated using fifteen Vitis vinifera L. 'Pinot noir' wines derived from the same scion clone (Pinot noir 667). These wines were produced from two vintage years (2015 and 2016) and eight different regions along the Pacific Coast of the United States.

Mechanistic Analysis of Solid-State Colorimetric Switching: Monoalkoxynaphthalene-Naphthalimide Donor-Acceptor Dyads.

There is growing interest in creating solids that are responsive to various stimuli. Herein we report the first molecular-level mechanistic picture of the thermochromic polymorphic transition in a series of MAN-NI dyad crystals that turn from orange to yellow upon heating with minimal changes to the microscopic morphology following the transition. Detailed structural analyses revealed that the dyads assemble to create an alternating bilayer type structure, with horizontal alternating alkyl and stacked aromatic layers in both the orange and yellow forms.