N-Heterocyclic Carbene Copper (I) Complexes Incorporating Pyrene Chromophore: Synthesis, Crystal Structure, and Luminescent Properties

Yaping Cheng (1) , Geoffrey Gontard (1) , Abderrahim Khatyr (2) , Michael Knorr (2) , Hani Amouri (1)

1 IPCM - Institut Parisien de Chimie Moléculaire
2 UTINAM - Univers, Transport, Interfaces, Nanostructures, Atmosphère et environnement, Molécules (UMR 6213)

Luminescent N-heterocyclic carbene chloride copper (I) complexes incorporating pyrene chromophore (1-Pyrenyl-NHC-R)-Cu-Cl, (3, 4) have been prepared and fully characterized. Two complexes were prepared with R = methyl (3) and R = naphthyl groups (4) at the nitrogen center of the carbene unit to tune their electronic properties. The molecular structures of 3 and 4 have been elucidated by X-ray diffraction and confirm the formation of the target compounds. Preliminary results reveal that all compounds including the imidazole-pyrenyl ligand 1 are emissive in the blue region at room temperature in solution and in solid-state. All complexes display quantum yields comparable or higher when compared to the parent pyrene molecule. Interestingly replacement of the methyl by naphthyl group increases the quantum yield by almost two-folds. These compounds might show promise for applications as optical displays.

Mots clés: Luminescent copper complexes; N-heterocyclic carbenes; Blue emitters; X-ray structural determination

Domaines: Chimie

Yaping Cheng, Geoffrey Gontard, Abderrahim Khatyr, Michael Knorr, Hani Amouri. N-Heterocyclic Carbene Copper (I) Complexes Incorporating Pyrene Chromophore: Synthesis, Crystal Structure, and Luminescent Properties. Molecules, 2023, 28 (10), pp.4025. ⟨10.3390/molecules28104025⟩. ⟨hal-04122674⟩