Spectral and kinetic properties of the radical ions of chloroboron(III) subnaphthalocyanine

Both the radical anion and radical cation of the chloroboron(III) subnaphthalocyanine (SubNc) cone-shaped macrocycle have been photochemically produced and their kinetics and absorption spectra have been characterised. SubNc is more prone to oxidation but less prone to reduction than its higher homologue, the chloroaluminium(III) phthalocyanine (Pc). Given the higher triplet quantum yield of SubNc compared to Pc, SubNc emerges as a very good photosensitiser for triplet-mediated reduction processes. The radical-ion spectra follow the same patterns found for Pcs, namely absorption bands at longer wavelengths than those of the singlet and triplet excited states.