Hydrophilic annulated dinuclear zinc(II) phthalocyanine as Type II photosensitizers for PDT: a combined experimental and (TD)-DFT investigation

The design, synthesis and theoretical calculations of a mononuclear and its corresponding annulated dinuclear hydrophilic zinc(II) phthalocyanines (ZnPcs) are reported here, the hydrophilic substituent being 1,3-bis((2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxolan-4-yl)methoxy)propan-2-ol. These novel compounds have been characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy in ethanol and ethanol: water (50: 50) solutions. The electronic spectra of the mononuclear derivatives retain the main spectral features of ZnPc with a strong Q-band absorbance at 678 nm in ethanol and a less intense B-band at 370 nm. The annulated dinuclear derivatives show a broad Q-band absorbance with main wavelength maxima between 600 and 720 nm. From time-dependent density functional (TDDFT) UV-vis spectra simulation performed on selected isomers, Q-band absorption maxima of the non-peripherally substituted forms are more red-shifted compared to those of peripheral forms.