Powering reductive charge shift reactions—linking fullerenes of different electron acceptor strength to secure an energy gradient

Abstract

We report here on one of the rare cases that realizes a reductive charge shift from a primary electron acceptor (C₆₀) to a secondary electron acceptor (C₇₀) in a ZnP–C₆₀–C₇₀ conjugate. Initially, charge separation evolves from an excited state electron donor (ZnP). By far the most far reaching benefit from such a reductive pathway is a marked slow down of the energy wasting charge recombination when compared to the ZnP–C₆₀ conjugate (i.e., picoseconds versus nanoseconds).