Synthesis and spectroscopic properties of 4-amino-1,8-naphthalimide derivatives involving the carboxylic group: a new molecular probe for ZnO nanoparticles with unusual fluorescence features

Of a series of 4-substituted 1,8-naphthalimides, fluorescent 4-(6-piperidinyl-1,3-dioxo-1H-benzo[de]isoquinolin-2(3H)-yl)benzoic acid (4) was found to be a sensitive molecular probe for ZnO nanoparticles. We investigated in detail one- and two-photon absorption properties of this fluorophore. In nonpolar solvents, the acid 4 absorbs at about 400 nm and fluoresces at 500 nm with a fluorescence lifetime of about 7 ns, similar to the ester 6 and typical of the lifetimes of other derivatives of this type. Although the anionic form of this acid is not fluorescent, partial ionization of 4 in polar solvents, such as ethanol and acetonitrile, is not only accompanied by the expected decrease in the fluorescence quantum yield, but also gives rise to bathochromic shifts of both absorption and fluorescence and dual fluorescence with lifetimes of 0.2–0.3 ns and 6 ns ascribed to the formation of anionic complexes. The interaction with the ZnO surface brings about further considerable changes in the fluorescence patterns.