Presented here is the study of a new example of [4]cyclofluorene, with ethyl chains on the bridgeheads. Its molecular structure was established by solution NMR spectroscopy and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Three successive oxidation processes and one reversible reduction were observed through cyclic voltammetry. The optical properties were characterized both in solution and thin film by UV/visible spectroscopy as well as stationary and time-resolved fluorescence. It was found that this [4]cyclofluorene displays different characteristics compared with the other [4]cyclofluorenes substituted by methyl or propyl chains: a simple modification of the chain length induces a non-negligible effect on the emission properties, which must be linked to the specific arrangement of the fluorene units. Furthermore, single-crystal X-ray diffraction reveals the formation of a pseudo-tubular solid-state arrangement of fully symmetrical ring structures, which was not observed for the other members of the [4]cyclofluorenes family. This finding could open the way to modulation of properties of cyclofluorenes through alkyl chain engineering.
Keywords: cyclofluorene; fluorescence; nanorings; structure-properties relationship.
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