Porphyrins

Patent Granted Porphyrins are a group of heterocyclic macrocycle organic compounds, composed of four modified pyrrole subunits interconnected at their α carbon atoms via methine bridges (=CH−). The parent porphyrin is porphine, and substituted porphines are called porphyrins. The porphyrin macrocycle has 26 (delocalized) pi electrons in total, therefore by Hückel's rule it is aromatic, possessing 4n+2 π electrons (n=4, for the shortest cyclic path). Thus porphyrin macrocycles are highly conjugated systems and consequently they typically have very intense absorption bands in the visible region and may be deeply colored; the name "porphyrin" comes from a Greek word for purple.