Crystal Structure and Crystalline State Multiphotochromism Properties of a Fused Diarylethene Dimer

The crystal structure of fused photochromic diarylethene dimer, 1,4-bis-[4-(4-{2-(5-phenyl)-2-methyl-thiophen-3-yl]-3,3,4,4,5,5-hexafluoro-cyclopent-1-enyl}-5-methyl-thiophen-2-yl) buta-1,3-diyne(1 oo, C46 H23 F12 S4) was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. This crystal belongs to the triclinic system, space group P1 with a = 7.546(3), b = 8.869(3), c = 16.196(5), α = 98.000(4)°, β = 100.803(4)°, γ = 98.449(4)°, Z = 2, V = 1037.6(6) ?~3, Dc = 1.496 mg/m^3, μ = 0.317, F(000) = 474, the final R = 0.0428 and wR = 0.1199 for 4115 observed reflections(I > 2σ(I)). Further study demonstrated this compound underwent reversible photochromism with color-switching between colorlessness and green in crystalline state. Upon 365 nm irradiation, the diarylethene shows one step photochromism to form isomer 1 oc. When irradiated with 312 nm, the stepwise photocyclization reactions occurred in diarylethene dimer through the line of 1 oo to 1 oc to 1 cc.