2,3,4,5-Tetraphenyl-1H-pyrrole (TePP) was synthesized by a simple one-step reaction. The compound showed a balanced emission in both the solution and solid state with the absolute quantum yield of ΦF/THF =65.6 % and ΦF/solid =74.3 %, respectively. Temperature and viscosity variation measurements demonstrated that the phenyl group at the 1-position (N-position) of the pyrrole core can act as a rotor in pyrrole-based molecules, which can consume the excited energy and reduce the molecular emission in solution. TePP without the phenyl group at the 1-position can effectively enhance the emission in solution. Single-crystal analysis showed that the phenyl groups at the 2,5-positions of pyrrole extend the molecular conjugation and lock the conformation. The phenyl groups at the 3,4-positions with a twisted conformation prevent their molecules from close packing and are helpful for aggregated emission. A delicate balance between the twisting conformation and rigid conjugation takes advantage of both ACQ and AIE luminogens. The strategy can tune the AIE, ACQ, or solution and solid dual-state emission properties of pyrrole-based molecules by simply altering the position of phenyl groups, which provides a great opportunity to explore the luminescent mechanism in greater detail and to facilitate practical applications.
Keywords: aggregation-induced emission; dual-state emission materials; intermolecular interactions; pyrrole-based molecules; structure-property relationships.
© 2018 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.