Dynamic crystals respond to external stimulus such as heat, light and pressure, thus they have potential as smart material in application such as sensors and actuators. Herein we studied the photodynamic behavior of three different azido acetophenone derivatives. These azido derivatives undergo the same a-cleavage reactivity in the solid-state, which results in release of N<sub>2</sub> gas. However, because the crystal packing arrangements of the azido derivatives are different, they respond differently to light exposure. We obtained their X-ray structures and analyzed the intermolecular bonds within the crystal lattice and compared to their photodynamic behavior. Theoretical calculations in CrystalExplorer provided the intermolecular strengths within each crystal lattice which explain their different photoresponses.  Furthermore, we demonstrated that the most photodynamic crystal can be used to lift weight that is at least 50x its own weight. The advantages of this are no carbon-based gas byproduct, metals, solvents, or high heat, making it useful for advanced materials work.

Using crystals of photodynamic α-azido-acetophenone derivatives to lift weight in correlation to their intermolecular forces

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