Excited state dynamics and nonlinear absorption of a pyrazinoporphyrazine macrocycle carrying externally appended pyridine rings

The multiphoton absorption properties of the tetrakis-2,3-[5,6-di(2-pyridyl)pyrazino]porphyrazinato(monoacquo)Mg( II) complex [Py(8)TPyzPzMg(H2O)] (1) are reported and interpreted. The nonlinear optical behavior of 1 and the characterization of the excited states important for the nonlinear absorption process were studied at the pump frequency of the second harmonic generation of a Nd:YAG laser in the nanosecond time regime. It was found that complex 1 shows a very good optical limiting performance at 532 nm, which derives from two processes: (a) a reverse-saturable absorption process, which involves a triplet excited state at low intensities, and (b) a two-photon absorption process at higher intensities, which is due to the formation of the radical monoanion of 1, [Py(8)TPyzPzMg(H2O)](center dot-), during the photoreduction of the triplet state. The participation of a monoanion in determining the overall nonlinear absorption behavior of 1 is found, for the first time, for a tetrapyrrolic system. One can deduce that the involvement of the monoanion derives from the electron-withdrawing effect of the dipyridinopyrazino fragments externally attached to the porphyrazine core which make the reduced form of 1 easily accessible. These results suggest a modification of tetrapyrrolic systems with new nonlinear absorption properties.