Enantiopure cycloplatinated pentahelicenic N-heterocyclic carbenic complexes that display long-lived circularly polarized phosphorescence.

The preparation of the first enantiopure cycloplatinated complexes bearing a bidentate, helicenic N-heterocyclic carbene and a diketonate ancillary ligand is presented, along with their structural and spectroscopic characterization based on both experimental and computational studies. The systems exhibit long-lived circularly polarized phosphorescence in solution and in doped films at room temperature, and also in a frozen glass at 77 K, with dissymmetry factor glum values ≥10-3 in the former and around 10-2 in the latter.

Twisted Carbazole Dendrons for Solution-Processable Green Emissive Phosphorescent Dendrimers.

A family of first-generation dendrimers containing 3,5-bis(carbazolyl)phenyl dendrons attached to a green emissive fac-tris(2-phenylpyridyl)iridium(III) core were prepared. The solubility of the dendrimers was imparted by the attachment of tert-butyl surface groups to the carbazole moieties. The dendrimers differed in the number of dendrons attached to each ligand (one or two dendrons) as well as the degree of rotational restriction within the dendrons. The densities of the films containing the doubly dendronized materials were higher than those of their mono-dendronized counterparts, with the dendrimer containing two rotationally constrained dendrons per ligand having the highest density at 1.12 ± 0.04 g cm-3. The dendrimers were found to have high photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQYs) in solution of between 80 and 90%, with the doubly dendronized materials having the lower values and a red-shifted emission. The neat film PLQY values of the dendrimers were less than those measured in solution although the relative decrease was smaller for the doubly dendronized materials. The dendrimers were incorporated into solution-processed bilayer organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) composed of neat or blend emissive layers and an electron transport layer. The best-performing devices had the dendrimers blended with a host material and external quantum efficiencies as high as 14.0%, which is higher than previously reported results for carbazole-incorporating emissive dendrimers. A feature of the devices containing blends of the doubly dendronized materials was that the maximum efficiency was relatively insensitive to the concentration in the host between 1 and 7 mol %.

Mono and dinuclear iridium(iii) complexes featuring bis-tridentate coordination and Schiff-base bridging ligands: the beneficial effect of a second metal ion on luminescence.

The synthesis and photophysical properties of a set of iridium(iii) complexes featuring tridentate N^N^O-coordinating ligands are described, of generic structure [Ir(N^C^N-dpyx)(N^N^O-Ln)]+ (n = 1 to 4) (dpyx = 1,3-dipyridyl-4,6-dimethylbenzene). The proligands HLn are Schiff bases synthesised by condensation of salicylaldehydes with N-methyl-hydrazinopyridines: they are able to coordinate to the Ir(iii) via lateral pyridine-N and phenolate-O- atoms and a central hydrazone-N atom; the four examples differ in the substitution pattern within the phenolate ring. The bis-tridentate coordination is confirmed by X-ray diffraction. The complexes are phosphorescent in solution at ambient temperature, with higher quantum yields and longer lifetimes than those of structurally related bis-cyclometallated complexes with an N^N^C-coordinating ligand. Related proligands H2L5 and H2L6 have been prepared from 4,6-bis(1-methyl-hydrazino)pyrimidine. They feature a central pyrimidine and two N^N^O units. They are shown to bind as ditopic, bis-tridentate ligands with two iridium(iii) ions, leading to unprecedented dinuclear complexes of the form [{Ir(N^C^N)}2(O^N^N-N^N^O-Ln)]2+ (n = 5, 6; N^C^N = dpyx or 1,3-dipyridyl-4,6-difluoro-benzene), with an intramolecular IrIr distance of around 6 Å determined crystallographically. Mononuclear analogues [Ir(N^C^N-dpyx)(N^N^O-HLn)]+ have also been isolated. The dinuclear complexes display a well-defined and unusually intense lowest-energy absorption band in the visible region, around 480 nm. They emit much more efficiently than their mononuclear counterparts, even though the emission wavelengths are comparable. Their superior performance appears to be due to an enhancement in the radiative rate constant, affirming conclusions drawn from recent related studies of dinuclear Ir(iii) and Pt(ii) complexes with ditopic, pyrimidine-based cyclometallating ligands.

A family of readily synthesised phosphorescent platinum(ii) complexes based on tridentate N

The synthesis and photophysical properties of 22 platinum(ii) complexes featuring N^N^O-coordinating ligands are described. The complexes have the form Pt(N^N^O-Ln)Cl (n = 1 to 20). The tridentate ligands comprise lateral pyridine and phenolate rings, offering the metal N and O coordination respectively, linked via an imine or hydrazone unit that provides a further, central N atom for coordination. The proligands HLn, some of which have previously been reported for the coordination of 1st row transition metal ions in other contexts, are Schiff bases that are readily synthesised by condensation of salicylaldehydes either with 8-aminoquinoline (to generate imine-based ligands HL1-4) or with 2-hydrazinopyridines (to generate hydrazone-based proligands HL5-20). The Pt(ii) complexes are prepared under mild conditions upon treatment of the proligands with simple Pt(ii) salts. Metathesis of the chloride ligand by an acetylide is possible, as exemplified by the preparation of two further complexes of the form Pt(N^N^O-Ln)(-C[triple bond, length as m-dash]C-Ar), where Ar = 3,5-bis(trifluoromethyl)phenyl. Nine of the complexes have been characterised in the solid state by X-ray diffraction. The imine-based complexes have intense low-energy absorption bands around 520 nm attributed to charge-transfer transitions. They display deep red phosphorescence in solution at ambient temperature, with λmax in the range 635-735 nm, quantum yields up to 4.6% and lifetimes in the microsecond range. The hydrazone complexes that feature a py-NH-N[double bond, length as m-dash]C-Ar linker display pH-dependent absorption spectra owing to the acidity of the hydrazone NH: these complexes have poor photostability in solution. In contrast, their N-methylated analogues (i.e., py-NMe-N[double bond, length as m-dash]C-Ar) show no evidence of photodecomposition. They are phosphorescent in solution at room temperature in the 600-640 nm region, the emission maximum being influenced by substituents in the phenolate ring. The results show how simply prepared tridentate Schiff base ligands - which offer the metal a combination of 5- and 6-membered chelate rings - can provide access to phosphorescent Pt(ii) complexes that have superior emissive properties to those of terpyridines, for example.

A Series of [Co(Mabiq)Cl2-n] (n = 0, 1, 2) Compounds and Evidence for the Elusive Bimetallic Form.

The synthesis and characterization of a series of cobalt compounds, coordinated by the redox-active macrocyclic biquinazoline ligand, Mabiq [2-4:6-8-bis(3,3,4,4-tetramethyldihydropyrrolo)-10-15-(2,2'-biquinazolino)-[15]-1,3,5,8,10,14-hexaene-1,3,7,9,11,14-N6], is presented. The series includes the monometallic Co(Mabiq)Cl2 (1), Co(Mabiq)Cl (2), and Co(Mabiq) (4), with formal metal oxidation states of 3+ → 1+. A binuclear cobaltous compound, Co2(Mabiq)Cl3 (3), also was obtained, providing the first evidence for the ability of the Mabiq ligand to coordinate two metal ions. The electronic structures of the paramagnetic 2 and 3 were examined by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy and magnetic susceptibility studies. The Co(II) ion that resides in the N4-macrocylic cavity of 2 and 3 adopts a low-spin S = (1)/2 configuration. The bypirimidine functionality in 3 additionally coordinates a high-spin S = (3)/2 cobaltous ion in a tetrahedral environment. The two metal ions in 3 are weakly coupled by magnetometry. The square-planar, low-valent 4 offers one of a limited number of examples of structurally characterized N4-macrocyclic Co(I) compounds. Spectroscopic and density functional theory computational data suggest that a Co(II)(Mabiq(•)) description may be a reasonable alternative to the Co(I) formalism for this compound.