Pentacene dimers bridged by a phenylene at ortho and meta positions [denoted as o-(Pc) and m-(Pc)] were synthesized to examine intramolecular orientation-dependent multiexciton dynamics, especially focusing on singlet fission (SF) and recombination from correlated triplet pairs [(TT)]. Absorption and electrochemical measurements indicated strong intramolecular couplings of o-(Pc) relative to m-(Pc). Femtosecond and nanosecond TA measurements successfully demonstrated efficient SF in both dimers. In contrast, the dissociation process from the (TT) to the individual triplets [(2 × T)] was clearly observed in m-(Pc), which is in sharp contrast to a major recombination process in o-(Pc). Time-resolved electron spin resonance (TR-ESR) measurements demonstrated that the recombination and dissociation proceed from the quintet state of (TT) in m-(Pc). The rate constant of the SF was 2 orders of magnitude greater in o-(Pc) than that in m-(Pc) and was rationalized by enhanced electronic coupling between adjacent HOMOs of the Pc units.

Singlet fission (SF) is expected to exceed the theoretical limit of the solar cell efficiency. Quintet (Q) state generation in triplet-triplet pair is essential for preventing the unwanted loss of SF-born multiexciton through singlet channels, although little is known on the primary multiexciton spin dynamics following the intermolecular SF. In this study, time-resolved EPR revealed the intermolecular multiexciton dynamics, energetics and geometries in aggregated 6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)pentacene and 2-phenyl-6,11-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)tetracene in diluted frozen solution. We have demonstrated sublevel selective generations of excited quintet states (|Q⟩, |Q⟩ and |Q⟩) by singlet-quintet (SQ) mixings during triplet-exciton diffusions within geminate multiexcitons. The present fundamental characteristics of the quintet generations shows strong impact of coexistence of molecularly ordered "hot spot" and disordered regions for exergonic SQ mixings driven by entropy, thereby paving a new avenue for rational designs of organic devices with controlled multiexciton dynamics by optimizing film morphologies.

Building efficient triplet-harvesting layers for photovoltaic applications requires a deep understanding of the microscopic properties of the components involved and their dynamics. Singlet fission is a particularly appealing mechanism as it generates two excitons from a single photon. However, the pathways of the coupled triplets into free species, and their dependence on the intermolecular geometry, has not been fully explored. In this work, we produce highly ordered dilute pentacene films with distinct parallel and herringbone dimers and aggregates. Using electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, we provide compelling evidence for the formation of distinct quintet excitons in ambient conditions, with intrinsically distinctive electronic and kinetic properties. We find that the ability of quintets to separate into free triplets is promoted in the parallel dimers and this provides molecular design rules to control the triplets, favouring either enhanced photovoltaic efficiency (parallel) or strongly bound pairs that could be exploited for logic applications (herringbone).

Hematite (α-Fe2O3) is one of the most promising candidates as a photoanode materials for solar water splitting. Owing to the difficulty in suppressing the significant charge recombination, however, the photoelectrochemical (PEC) conversion efficiency of hematite is still far below the theoretical limit. Here we report thick hematite films (∼1500 nm) constructed by highly ordered and intimately attached hematite mesocrystals (MCs) for highly efficient PEC water oxidation. Due to the formation of abundant interfacial oxygen vacancies yielding a high carrier density of ∼1020 cm−3 and the resulting extremely large proportion of depletion regions with short depletion widths (<10 nm) in hierarchical structures, charge separation and collection efficiencies could be markedly improved. Moreover, it was found that long-lived charges are generated via excitation by shorter wavelength light (below ∼500 nm), thus enabling long-range hole transfer through the MC network to drive high efficiency of light-to-energy conversion under back illumination.

Singlet fission (SF) theoretically enables the performance of the sequential photoenergy conversion process starting from the singlet state and leading to electron transfer (ET) with the radical ion pair quantum yield approaching 200%. Additionally, the long lifetime of the triplet state opens the possibility for an intermolecular ET process in a diffusion-limited reaction. However, the quantitative two-electron transfer process through SF has yet to be reported. Herein we demonstrate the quantitative sequential process involving SF and leading to intermolecular two-electron transfers using 2,2′-biphenyl-bridged tetracene dimer (Tet-BP-Tet: SF and electron donor) and chloranil (Ch: electron acceptor). The high-yield and long-lived individual triplet excited states of Tet-BP-Tet by SF (ΦT = 175 ± 5% and τT = 0.29 ms) resulted in the quantitative two-electron transfer process (ΦET = 173 ± 5%) with Ch in benzonitrile.