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A series of solid-state luminescent dyes based on 2-phenylimidazo[1,2-a]pyridine (PIP) displaying a wide range of emitting colors from blue to red have been developed. Whereas 2′-methoxy PIP (2′MeOPIP, 10) shows blue luminescence, 2′-hydroxy PIP (HPIP, 1) exhibits emission with large Stokes shift at around 500 nm that is known as the excited-state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) luminescence, which can be tuned from blue-green to red by simply introducing aryl group(s) into HPIP through Pd-catalyzed cross coupling reactions. It is shown that the energy of ESIPT luminescence decreases as the electron-withdrawing nature of the para-substituent on the aryl group increases. Varying the substitution position is also an effective tuning method, because the ESIPT luminescence wavelength is in the order 6-aryl ＜ 8-aryl ＜ 6,8-diaryl. Although the quantum yields of these compounds are quite low in organic solutions (Φ∼ 0.01), they generally display a much stronger ESIPT luminescence in the solid state. For all compounds except for 9 having long C6-alkyl chains, the similar emission properties in the dilute frozen matrix and the solid state indicated that ESIPT emission in the solid state is from the monomeric species, even though π-stacked motifs of the HPIP cores and the aryl groups introduced are confirmed by crystallographic analysis. Time-dependent DFT calculations reasonably explained the effect of substitution on ESIPT luminescence in the solid state. The results show that aryl-substitution is a convenient approach to tuning the radiation energy of the ESIPT luminescence of HPIPs without suffering the quenching effect due to intermolecular interactions, and thus a series of PIP compounds that exhibit a wide range of luminescence colors can be realized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By introduction of ‘appropriate’ steric hindrance into 2-(2′-hydroxyphenyl)benzimidazole, the obtained compound forms polymorphic crystals based on either intramolecular or intermolecular hydrogen bonding, which respectively show strong ESIPT luminescence (ON state; Φ = 0.74) and practically no luminescence (OFF state; Φ = 0.007). Further, the luminescence can be switched off and on by heating and grinding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of amide and ester derivatives of 1,3,6,8-tetraphenylpyrene (TPPy) were prepared, and their solid-state luminescence, molecular packing, and piezochromic responses were studied in order to improve and refine the design concept of piezochromic luminescent materials based on the use of multiple hydrogen bonds and close packing of disk-shaped aromatic cores as competing factors in the control of molecular packing. The amide derivative of TPPy having hexyl side chains (1b) showed a sensitive luminescence response at a relatively low applied pressure, which was ascribed to the hydrogen bond-directed H-type columnar packing. Application of higher pressure induced considerable destruction of the hydrogen bond-directed structure, leading to the state where close packing was the overriding factor directing the molecular assembly and showed similar piezochromic response to that of the ester derivative. Based on the results, the role of the amide hydrogen bonds and the side chains was discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

6-Cyano-2-(2'-hydroxyphenyl)imidazo[1,2-a]-pyridine (6CN-HPIP) shows polymorph-dependent luminescence with the three different crystal forms exhibiting the packing-controlled tuning of bright colors, orange, yellow, and red. The distinctive emission in aggregated states was treated with finite cluster models and analyzed by means of quantum chemistry calculations. The influence of structural displacements and intermolecular interactions in the crystalline state on solid state luminescence was examined in detail using the Fragment Molecular Orbital (FMO) scheme, suitable for studies of aggregated molecular systems. The FMO pair interaction analysis of the S1-S0 emission maxima indicated that the intermolecular side-to-side interactions cause hypsochromic shifts; facial interactions induce bathochromic shifts; and crystal packing effects in total induce hypsochromic shifts. The FMO predictions of the emission maxima offered qualitatively satisfactory agreements with the experiments. However, the small cluster models including up to 17 molecules did not reach quantitative convergence, i.e., the emission colour order among them was not well reproduced.

Four kinds of bis(Ni-salphen) complexes containing a 2-methylenepropane-1,3-diyl linker were synthesised and characterised. Crystal structural analysis revealed that one of the complexes folded into a helical structure, in which two Ni atoms were at a distance of 3.2 Å from each other. NMR measurements suggested that a similar folded state was maintained in solution, and the energy barrier for refolding through an unfolded state was 47 kJ mol(-1). The folded complex also exhibited a significant bathochromic shift in its UV-Vis absorption structure. Addition of sodium ions caused unfolding of the complexes, and the corresponding spectra were attributed to a virtually isolated state. DFT calculations reproduced well the energy barrier and folding-induced bathochromic shift.

By using propylamine as a connector, a dimer (L2) and trimer (L3) of 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine (tpy) are synthesized. They showed the lowest energy π–π* absorption at 354 nm and blue fluorescence at 420 nm with a moderate quantum yield in solution. Spectral titrations, electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), (1)H–(1)H rotating-frame nuclear Overhauser effect correlation spectroscopy (ROESY), and structure simulation (MOPAC/PM5) indicated that both L2 and L3 form duplex-type multi-component complexes with Cd(II), [Cd(2)(L2)(2)](4+) and [Cd(3)(L3)(2)](6+), respectively. While the luminescence of these complexes was quite weak in solution (quantum yield Φ < 0.005), the complexes showed enhanced emission in the solid state with remarkable increase of the quantum yield (Φ = 0.13).

Several N-alkyl and N-phenyl derivatives of 6-amino- () and 6,6'-diamino-2,2':6',2''-terpyridine () were synthesized, and their fluorescence properties were studied. A successive red-shift was observed as the number of the N-substituted groups increased. It was also shown that the susceptivity of the fluorophores to a solvent varied considerably according to the mode of the N-substitution. While the monoamino-tpys (tpy: 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine) suffered almost complete quenching of their fluorescence in ethanol, the fully N-alkylated diamino-tpys and retained their fluorescence. The results show that N-substitution is a useful way to tune both the radiation energy and solvent susceptivity of the fluorescence of the amino-tpys.

From all the 11 alkylsilylated guanosine and adenosine derivatives having different numbers and types of nonpolar and flexible alkylsilyl side chains, 13 crystals were obtained from appropriate solvents in spite of their low molecular symmetry, and their crystal structures were studied by X-ray crystallography and thermal analysis. In these crystals, a clear structural hierarchy was observed, and one-dimensional tape motifs were preferentially formed by multiple inter-base hydrogen bonds. The tape motifs were arranged in lamellar-like (L), herringbone (H) or widened lamella (WL) structures in the crystals. However, the alkylsilylated ribose unit adopted a variety of conformations with notable disorders at the alkylsilyl moiety. These results suggested that role of the adjustable and nonpolar alkylsilyl ribose unit was to provide cushioning or a filling effect as a molecular pad, which assisted the crystal packing of the robust tape motifs. The packing mode of the tape motifs could be understood from the size instead of the shape of the adjustable alkylsilyl ribose moiety, offering a novel approach to their crystal engineering.

By using an oligopeptide chain as a functional linker and introducing coumarin 2 and coumarin 343 at the chain ends, an effective photo-induced energy transfer system was constructed and energy transfer from coumarin 2 to coumarin 343 was switched on and off by a solvent-induced helix-coil secondary transition of the oligopeptide chain.