Ultrafast Photoinduced Electron Transfer from Peroxide Dianion

The encapsulation of peroxide dianion by hexacarboxamide cryptand provides a platform for the study of electron transfer of isolated peroxide anion. Photoinitiated electron transfer (ET) between freely diffusing Ru(bpy)(3)(2+) and the peroxide dianion occurs with a rate constant of 2.0 x 10(10) M-1 s(-1). A competing electron transfer quenching pathway is observed within an ion pair. Picosecond transient spectroscopy furnishes a rate constant of 1.1 x 10(10) s(-1) for this first-order process. A driving force dependence for the ET rate within the ion pair using a series of Ru(bpy)(3)(2+) derivatives allows for the electronic coupling and reorganization energies to be assessed. The ET reaction is nonadiabatic and dominated by a large inner-sphere reorganization energy, in accordance with that expected for the change in bond distance accompanying the conversion of peroxide dianion to superoxide anion.