Pairing multicomponent stators with aromatic rotators for new emissive molecular rotors

Org Biomol Chem. 2021 Apr 26;19(15):3404-3412. doi: 10.1039/d1ob00161b.

Abstract

We demonstrate here that the Ugi-Sonogashira protocol can be successfully used to obtain five new molecular rotors 10a-e with strong emission. They have been synthesized by combining multicomponent Ugi stators and several aromatic rotary components: phenylene, p-xylene, naphthalene and anthracene. The synthesized conjugated rotors are highly fluorescent (Φf = 0.39 to Φf = 0.10), and changes in their emission were observed upon variations of the surrounding media. Particularly, we found that they are sensitive to aggregation (THF/water) or high viscosity (methanol/glycerol) conditions. This work paves the way to develop new emissive rotors with exciting photophysical properties.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't