Polypeptides with pendant porphyrins of defined sequence of chromophores: towards artificial photosynthetic systems
Résumé
In this paper we now report our ongoing progress in the preparation of artificial photosynthetic systems through the preparation of light harvesting multi-porphyrins. A tetramer, constituted of a central dipeptide functionalized by two free-base porphyrins and surrounded by one amino-acid bearing a pendant Zn(II) porphyrin on each side, has been chosen. The optical and photophysical properties of this tetramer have been studied by absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy. In addition, the energy transfer phenomenon has been studied and monitored by femtosecond time-resolved fluorescence. Our results indicate that the excited state dynamics redounding in the excitation being localized in the inner free-base porphyrins takes place in the time scale of approximately 1 ps.