Effects of Preferential Solvation Revealed by Time-Resolved Magnetic Field Effects

External magnetic fields can impact recombination yields of photoinduced electron transfer reactions by affecting the spin dynamics in transient, spin-correlated radical pair intermediates. For exciplex-forming donor-acceptor systems, this magnetic field effect (MFE) can be investigated sensitively by studying the delayed recombination fluorescence. Here, we investigate the effect of preferential solvation in microheterogeneous solvent mixtures on the radical pair dynamics of the system 9,10-dimethylanthracene (fluorophore)/N,N-dimethylaniline (quencher) by means of time-resolved magnetic field effect (TR-MFE) measurements, wherein the exciplex emission is recorded in the absence and the presence of an external magnetic field using time-correlated single photon counting (TCSPC). In microheterogeneous environments, the MFE of the exciplex emission occurs on a faster time scale than in iso-dielectric homogeneous solvents. In addition, the local polarity reported by the exciplex is enhanced compared to homogeneous solvent mixtures of the same macroscopic permittivity. Detailed analyses of the TR-MFE reveal that the quenching reaction directly yielding the radical ion pair is favored in microheterogeneous environments. This is in stark contrast to homogeneous media, for which the MFE predominantly involves direct formation of the exciplex, its subsequent dissociation to the magneto-sensitive radical pair, and re-encounters. These observations provide evidence for polar microdomains and enhanced caging, which are shown to have a significant impact on the reaction dynamics in microheterogeneous binary solvents.