Nature effectively employs the light-induced transfer of a proton for rapid interconversion between different electronic states of a molecule and uses tautomerism as a functional design principle in biological systems. Twenty-five years ago, the theoretical design concept of proton cranes was introduced to describe molecules capable of transferring protons at a long-range upon photoexcitation, by […]
Herein, we demonstrate a working prototype of a conjugated proton crane, a reversible tautomeric switching molecule in which truly intramolecular long-range proton transfer occurs in solution at room temperature. The system consists of a benzothiazole rotor attached to a 7-hydroxy quinoline stator. According to the experimental and theoretical results, the OH proton is delivered under […]