Considerations for ultrafast photomagnetism in manganese(III)-based single-molecule magnets

Manipulation of magnetic materials is a cornerstone of digital data storage technologies. Recently, it has been shown that femtosecond laser pulses are capable of switching the magnetization in a material between two stable configurations faster than ever before. One state-of-the-art method is to use laser pulses to control the magnetic anisotropy by photoexciting crystal-field transitions. The photoinduced change in anisotropy applies a torque to the magnetic moment, which reorientates it in a different direction. So far, research has focused solely on condensed matter materials. However, there is a huge variety of molecule-based magnetic materials that have been and continue to be developed. In particular, single-molecule magnets (SMMs) provide a highly tunable platform and have the added advantage of operating on nanometer length scales. This review discusses recent research in the area of ultrafast magnetism in SMMs, with a focus on manganese(III)-based transition metal complexes. Experimental data are reviewed, showing that control of the strength of the photoinduced anisotropy, the lifetime of excited states, and the dephasing times are possible and can be used to develop some design criteria for the best optically controllable SMMs.