Center of Single-Molecule Sciences, Institute of Modern Optics, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Micro-scale Optical Information Science and Technology, College of Electronic Information and Optical Engineering, Nankai University, 38 Tongyan Road, Jinnan District, Tianjin, 300350, P. R. China.
Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, National Biomedical Imaging Center College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, 292 Chengfu Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100871, P. R. China.
Macromol Rapid Commun. 2022 Aug;43(16):e2200017. doi: 10.1002/marc.202200017. Epub 2022 Feb 20.
The photochemical reaction is a very important type of chemical reaction. Visualizing and controlling photo-mediated reactions is a long-standing goal and challenge. In this regard, single-molecule electrical detection with label-free, real-time, and in situ characteristics has unique advantages in monitoring the dynamic process of photoreactions at the single-molecule level. In this review, a valuable summary of the latest process of single-molecule photochemical reactions based on single-molecule electrical platforms is provided. The single-molecule electrical detection platforms for monitoring photoreactions are displayed, including their fundamental principles, construction methods, and practical applications. The single-molecule studies of two different types of light-mediated reactions are summarized as below: i) photo-induced reactions, including reversible cyclization, conformational isomerization, and other photo-related reactions; ii) plasmon-mediated photoreactions, including reaction mechanisms and concrete examples, such as plasmon-induced photolysis of SS/OO bonds and tautomerization of porphycene. In addition, the prospects for future research directions and challenges in this field are also discussed.
光化学反应是一种非常重要的化学反应类型。可视化和控制光介导的反应是一个长期的目标和挑战。在这方面，具有无标记、实时和原位特点的单分子电学检测在监测光化学反应的单分子水平的动态过程方面具有独特的优势。在这篇综述中，提供了基于单分子电学平台的最新单分子光化学反应过程的有价值的总结。展示了用于监测光反应的单分子电学检测平台，包括其基本原理、构建方法和实际应用。总结了两种不同类型的光介导反应的单分子研究：i）光诱导反应，包括可逆环化、构象异构化和其他光相关反应；ii）等离子体介导的光反应，包括反应机制和具体实例，如 SS/OO 键的等离子体诱导光解和卟啉的互变异构。此外，还讨论了该领域未来的研究方向和挑战。
