The results of the monitoring of the [4 + 4] photocycloaddition reaction path in single crystals of bi(anthracene-9,10-dimethylene) at high pressure are presented. The crystal structures for several steps of the phototransformation at 0.3 GPa and 1.0 GPa were determined and analysed. The applied high pressure did not halt the photochemical reaction and almost 100% of the product molecules were obtained, although the reaction was very slowly reversible similarly to that of ambient conditions. During the crystal phototransformation the intramolecular geometry, molecular orientation and intermolecular interactions of the reactant changed more and more towards the values observed for the product. The initial increase in the unit cell volume brought about by the photochemical reaction was diminished by high pressure. High pressure itself did not significantly influence the intramolecular geometry of the reactant and product molecules, but it influenced the intermolecular interactions.
Structural transformations in crystals induced by radiation and pressure. Part 4. The complex influence of high pressure on the path and kinetics of the [2 + 2] photodimerization
