Intramolecular charge transfers between π-conjugated molecules and polyoxometalate (POM) clusters have been observed in donor-acceptor systems based on organic donors and inorganic POM acceptors, which unfortunately results in a general quenching of the chromophore luminescence. The development of POM-chromophore dyads that are capable of tackling the quenching process and enhancing the fluorescence intensity of such systems remains a highly challenging area of study. A family of organic-inorganic polyoxometalate <!?tlsb=-0.2pt>hybrids, {[(n-C4H9)4N]3[(MnMo6O24){(CH2)3CR}2]} [1, R = -NHCH2C14H9, namely (anthracen-9-ylmethyl)amino; 2, R = -NHCH2C13H9, (9H-fluoren-2-ylmethyl)amino; 3, R = -NHCH2C10H7, (naphthalen-2-ylmethyl)amino; 4, R = -NHCH2C16H9, (pyren-2-ylmethyl)amino], were synthesized by covalently tethering π-conjugated molecules onto an Anderson cluster. The resulting POM-chromophore dyads were fully characterized by various spectroscopic techniques, single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis and ESI-MS. The fluorescence features of these dyads were studied in detail to verify a dramatic emission enhancement that can be achieved by fine-tuning the microenvironment in solution and suppressing the intrinsic photo-induced electron-transfer process.
Keywords: Anderson cluster; POM; chromophore; crystal structure; fluorescence; organic–inorganic hybrid; polyoxometalate.