Effects of cyano, ethynyl and ethylenedioxy groups on the photophysical properties of carbazole-based porphyrins

The synthesis and photophysical properties of cyano and ethynyl substituted carbazole-based porphyrins were investigated. The introduction of ethynyl groups induced red shifts, while that of cyano groups induced blue shifts of their absorption bands, which was supported by MO calculations. Ethylenedioxy-appended porphyrins were also prepared via a coupling reaction. The conjugated and electronic substituent effects on the photophysical properties of the carbazole-based porphyrins have been elucidated by using both experimental results and calculations. Among these porphyrins, the ethylenedioxy-appended selenaporphyrin displayed intensified and red-shifted absorption in the NIR region up to 1178 nm.