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Towards Optimized Photoluminescent Copper(I) Phenanthroline-Functionalized Complexes: Control of the Photophysics by Symmetry-Breaking and Spin–Orbit Coupling

The electronic and structural alterations induced by the functionalization of the 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) ligand in [Cu(I) (phen-R(2))(2)](+) complexes (R=H, CH(3), tertio-butyl, alkyl-linkers) and their consequences on the luminescence properties and thermally activated delay fluorescence (TADF)...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Gourlaouen, Christophe, Daniel, Chantal
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2022
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9369739/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35955157
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ma15155222
Descripción
Sumario:The electronic and structural alterations induced by the functionalization of the 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) ligand in [Cu(I) (phen-R(2))(2)](+) complexes (R=H, CH(3), tertio-butyl, alkyl-linkers) and their consequences on the luminescence properties and thermally activated delay fluorescence (TADF) activity are investigated using the density functional theory (DFT) and its time-dependent (TD) extension. It is shown that highly symmetric molecules with several potentially emissive nearly-degenerate conformers are not promising because of low S(1)/S(0) oscillator strengths together with limited or no S(1)/T(1) spin–orbit coupling (SOC). Furthermore, steric hindrance, which prevents the flattening of the complex upon irradiation, is a factor of instability. Alternatively, linking the phenanthroline ligands offers the possibility to block the flattening while maintaining remarkable photophysical properties. We propose here two promising complexes, with appropriate symmetry and enough rigidity to warrant stability in standard solvents. This original study paves the way for the supramolecular design of new emissive devices.