Noncovalent one-to-one donor-acceptor assembled systems based on porphyrin molecular gels for unusually high electron-transfer efficiency.

A new approach for fabricating donor-acceptor assembled systems is demonstrated, based on J-type ordered aggregation of a low-molecular zinc porphyrin derivative and subsequent integration of a pyridylated fullerene derivative with coordination and orientation onto the porphyrin aggregates. This system achieves unusually high efficiencies in fluorescence quenching during one-to-one mixing of the donor and acceptor. Moreover, the Stern-Volmer constant (K(SV)) and association constant (K) of this system are 2520 and 56 times higher, respectively, than those of the corresponding nonassembled system. The quenching efficiency is thermotropically switchable, since ordered-to-disordered transitions are essential characteristics of noncovalent low molecular assemblies.