On the role of polymer chains in transducing external mechanical forces to benzocyclobutene mechanophores

Dopieralski, P.*; Anjukandi, P.*; Rckert, M.*; Shiga, Motoyuki   ; Ribas-Arino, J.*; Marx, D.*

The role played by polyethylene-like oligomers in transducing external tensile forces to benzocyclobutene mechanophores is investigated computationally. It is demonstrated that the oligomer chains do indeed exert a notable influence on the force dependence of the activation energies of both conrotatory and disrotatory ring-opening processes of a cis 1,2-disubstitutedbenzocyclobutene. This opens the doorway to tuning the properties of mechanoresponsive materials not only by changing the properties of the mechanophore itself, but also by tailoring the force-transducing chain molecules attached to it.