Energy Aspects of Thermal Molecular Switching: Molecular Thermal Hysteresis of Helicene Oligomers

Molecular switching is a phenomenon by which a molecule reversibly changes its structure and state in response to external stimuli or energy. Herein, molecular switching is discussed from thermodynamic and kinetic aspects in terms of energy supply with an emphasis on the thermal switching exhibited by helicene oligomers. It includes the inversion of relative thermodynamic stability induced by temperature changes and molecular thermal hysteresis in a closed system. The thermal phenomenon associated with the oligomers involves population/concentration changes between metastable states under nonequilibrium thermodynamic control.