J. Gawronski et al., EXCITED-STATES OF THE PHTHALIMIDE CHROMOPHORE AND THEIR EXCITON COUPLINGS - A TOOL FOR STEREOCHEMICAL ASSIGNMENTS, Journal of the American Chemical Society, 120(46), 1998, pp. 12083-12091
The electronically excited states of the phthalimide chromophore have
been studied by means of linear dichroism (LD) of samples partially or
iented in poly(vinyl alcohol) films, magnetic circular dichroism (MCD)
, and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy. On the basis of the LD mea
surements, the low-energy tail (340-320 nm) of the first absorption ba
nd is assigned to an out-of-plane polarized pi-->pi transition (I). A
t higher energy, the electronic spectrum is resolved into contribution
s from five pi-->pi transitions: II(300 nm, long-axis polarized), III
(275 nm, short-axis polarized), IV (235 nm, short-axis polarized), V
(220 nm, long-axis polarized), and VI (similar to 210 nm, short-axis p
olarized). The results from semiempirical (INDO/S-CI) and ab initio (C
IS/6-31+G(d)) MO calculations compare well with the proposed assignmen
ts of the excited states. Degenerate exciton interaction between elect
ric-dipole-allowed transitions of two phthalimide chromophores is obse
rved in the electronic absorption spectra of the achiral bis-phthalimi
des 2a-c and in the CD spectrum of the chiral bis-phthalimide 3a. For
the latter compound, the solid-state geometry has been determined by X
-ray diffraction analysis. Good agreement between experimental and com
puted CD spectra confirms that the coupled-oscillator exciton model pr
ovides the basis for a reliable nonempirical method for the assignment
of absolute configuration for this class of compounds. Nondegenerate
exciton coupling between phthalimide and benzoate or phenyl chromophor
es is born out in the CD spectra of homochiral molecules 3c and 3d wit
h the rigid cyclohexane skeleton. Finally, the exciton coupling method
is used to make stereochemical assignments for the acyclic, conformat
ionally flexible derivatives 4a-c and 5b.