Formation of Stilbene Azo-Dimer by Direct Irradiation of p-Azidostilbene.

Triplet arylnitrenes may provide direct access to aryl azo-dimers, which have broad commercial applicability. Herein, the photolysis of p-azidostilbene (1) in argon-saturated methanol yielded stilbene azo-dimer (2) through the dimerization of triplet p-nitrenostilbene ( 1N). The formation of 1N was verified by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and absorption spectroscopy (λ  ~ 375 nm) in cryogenic 2-methyltetrahydrofuran matrices.

Using Molecular Architecture to Control the Reactivity of a Triplet Vinylnitrene.

Photolysis of 3-azido-1-indenone (1) with a light-emitting diode (LED, λ = 405 nm) or mercury arc lamp (Pyrex) resulted in the formation of heterodimer 3 in excellent yield, through dimerization of triplet vinylnitrene 2. At ambient temperature, vinylnitrene 2 (λ at 340 and 480 nm) was detected directly with laser flash photolysis of vinyl azide 1. The vinylnitrene intermediate was also characterized directly with IR and ESR spectroscopy in cryogenic matrices.