On the Molecular Structure and UV/vis Spectroscopic Properties of the Solvatochromic and Thermochromic Pyridinium-N-Phenolate Betaine Dye B30

Quantum chemical calculations as well as vis absorption and fluorescence measurements of the pyridinium-N-phenolate betaine dye B30, dissolved in 1-chlorobutane at temperatures between 343 and 77 K, shed more light on the solvatochromism, thermosolvatochromism, and photophysical behavior of this probe dye, formerly used to establish an empirical scale of solvent polarity, called E-T(30) or E-T(N) scale. A new calculated gas-phase E-T(30) value is reported. Complementary to recent work of Kharlanov and Rettig (J. Phys. Chem. A 2009, 113, 10693-10703), it is shown that fluorescence of B30 in 1-chlorobutane solution is observable already at temperatures just below the solvent's melting point and not only at 77 K. Analogous to increasing solvent polarity, decreasing solvent temperature leads to a large hypsochromic shift of the vis absorption band of B30, dissolved in 1-chlorobutane (Delta lambda = -245 nm from 797 nm at 343 K to 552 nm at 77 K). This thermosolvatochromism can be easily seen: the solution color changes from greenish yellow (343 K) to magenta-violet (77 K).