Optically active dendrimers with a binaphthyl core and phenylene dendrons: light harvesting and enantioselective fluorescent sensing

Optically active dendrimers containing a 1,1'-binaphthyl core and cross-conjugated phenylene dendrons were synthesized and characterized. The chiral optical properties of these phenylene-based dendrimers are different from the previously reported phenyleneethynylene-based dendrimers probably because of the increased steric interaction between the adjacent phenylene units. UV and fluorescence spectroscopic studies demonstrate that the energy harvested by the periphery of the dendrimers can be efficiently transferred to the more conjugated core, generating much enhanced fluorescence signal at higher generation. The fluorescence of these dendrimers can be quenched both efficiently and enantioselectively by chiral amino alcohols. The energy migration and light-harvesting effects of the dendrimers make the higher generation dendrimer more sensitive to fluorescent quenchers than the lower ones. Thus, the dendritic structure provides a signal amplification mechanism. These materials are potentially useful in the enantioselective recognition of chiral organic molecules.     

Synthesis of Binaphthol Based Poly(arylene) Dendrimers and Their Use as Enantioselective Fluorescent Scensors

New optically active dendrimers (1-3) containing rigid and cross-conjugated units have been synthesized and characterized. UV and fluorescence spectroscopic studies demonstrate that the energy harvested by the periphery of the dendrimers can be efficiently transferred to the core. The fluorescence of the dendrimers can be quenched by amino alcohols (4-6) both efficiently and enantioselectively. The energy migration and light harvesting effects of the dendrimers make the higher generation dendrimers more sensitive fluorescent quencher than the lower ones.     

新型树枝功能化萘酰亚胺类发光材料的合成及其光放大效应

在树枝(dendron)上引入特定的功能单元,将多个具有特定功能团(咔唑)连接起来．形成功能化树枝状周边分子团簇,然后将它们分别与核心色素萘酰亚胺相连接,合成新型周边树枝状功能化的有机发光材料(共三代)。稳态荧光研究发现周边功能团吸收的能量能以较高的效率传递给中心核色素萘酰亚胺。其传输效率与化合物的树枝代数密切相关,具有特殊的光采集、光放大效应。瞬态荧光研究表明树枝化合物中的咔唑单元都呈双指数衰减特征,其中较短荧光寿命成分是咔唑和萘酰亚胺单元之间的相互作用。     

A Photophysical Study of Terphenyl Core Oligosulfonimide Dendrimers Exhibiting High Steady‐State Anisotropy

The photophysical properties of three dendrimers containing a p‐terphenyl core with appended sulfonimide branches of different size and n‐octyl chains have been investigated in dichloromethane solution. In the dendrimer absorption spectra contributions from both the branches and the core are clearly identified. The fluorescence spectra show only the characteristic fluorescence of the terphenyl unit. Energy transfer from the appended chromophoric groups to the core does not occur. In the dendrimers, the terphenyl core exhibits a very high fluorescence quantum yield (ca. 0.75) and a short emission lifetime (0.8 ns). These properties allowed investigations of the fluorescence depolarization caused by rotation of the dendrimers. The dendrimers show a very high steady‐state anisotropy in dichloromethane solution at room temperature (0.24 for the largest one), compared to that of the parent terphenyl under the same experimental conditions (<0.01) and in rigid matrix (0.33). Both the n‐octyl chains and the sulfonimide branches play important roles to slow down the molecular rotation.     

A facile convergent procedure for the preparation of triphenylamine-based dendrimers with truxene cores

A simple convergent procedure has been developed for the preparation of triphenylamine dendrons containing an alkene at the center, which can be coupled in a single step to give dendrimers that contain truxene for the core without any protection-deprotection chemistry. These conjugated dendrimers exhibit similar absorption and emission behaviors in solutions and in thin films, which are indicative of the high isolation effect of well-organized three-dimensional dendrimers. They also have high fluorescence quantum yields and high glass transition temperatures, which indicate that these dendrimers are candidates for the application in OLED as light emitting materials.     

Synthesis and properties of dendrimers possessing the same fluorophore(s) located either peripherally or off-center

Two series of phosphorus dendrimers functionalized by maleimide derivatives are synthesized, as well as three new monomeric maleimide derivatives, of which two are characterized by X-ray diffraction. The first series of phosphorus dendrimers possesses maleimide derivatives as end groups (6-48, from generation 0 to generation 3). The second series of dendrimers possesses a single copy of the same maleimide derivative linked "off-center" to a cyclotriphosphazene core, leading to dissymmetrical dendrimers; this series is synthesized from generation 0 to generation 2. The fluorescence properties of both series of dendrimers and of monomers are studied, affording new information. First, the presence of labile hydrogen extinguishes the fluorescence. Second, the grafting of the fluorophore(s) directly to the core affords highly fluorescent compounds. Finally, an original influence of the branches possessing phosphorhydrazone linkages toward the fluorescence properties is shown.     

Designing systems for a multiple use of light signals.

The photochemical and photophysical behavior of two dendrimers consisting of a benzophenone core and branches that contain dimethoxybenzene units has been investigated. Such dendrimers can undergo a variety of photochemical and photophysical processes, namely: 1) quenching of the fluorescence and phosphorescence of the dimethoxybenzene units by energy transfer to the benzophenone core (antenna effect), 2) direct and sensitized phosphorescence (and delayed fluorescence) of the benzophenone core, 3) hydrogen abstraction by the triplet excited state of the benzophenone core from solvent molecules, 4) intramolecular hydrogen abstraction by the triplet excited state of the benzophenone core from the dendrimer branches, 5) quenching of the phosphorescence and hydrogen abstraction reaction of the benzophenone core by energy transfer to terbium ions and dioxygen; 6) conversion of the UV light absorbed by the dendrimer branches into visible (Tb3+) or near infrared (O2) emission via the sequence of processes 1) and 5). The results obtained emphasize the great potential of suitably designed dendrimers for a multiple use of light signals.     

Polysulfurated pyrene-cored dendrimers: luminescent and electrochromic properties

We have synthesized a novel class of dendrimers, consisting of a polysulfurated pyrene core with appended poly(thiophenylene) dendrons (PyG0, PyG1, and PyG2, see Scheme 1), which exhibit remarkable photophysical and redox properties. In dichloromethane or cyclohexane solution they show a strong, dendron-localized absorption band with a maximum at around 260 nm and a band in the visible region with a maximum at 435 nm, which can be assigned to the pyrene core strongly perturbed by the four sulfur substituents. The dendrimers exhibit a strong (Phi=0.6), short-lived (tau=2.5 ns) core-localized fluorescence band with maximum at approximately 460 nm in cyclohexane solution at 293 K. A strong fluorescence is also observed in dichloromethane solution at 293 K, in dichloromethane/chloroform rigid matrix at 77 K, and in the solid state (powder) at room temperature. The dendrimers undergo reversible chemical and electrochemical one-electron oxidation with formation of a strongly colored deep blue radical cation. A second, reversible one-electron oxidation is observed at more positive potential values. The photophysical and redox properties of the three dendrimers are finely tuned by the length of their branches. The strong blue fluorescence and the yellow to deep blue color change upon reversible one-electron oxidation can be exploited for optoelectronic devices.     

Optically active BINOL core-based phenyleneethynylene dendrimers for the enantioselective fluorescent recognition of amino alcohols

A dramatic enhancement in fluorescence intensity from 1,1'-bi-2-naphthol (BINOL) to dendritic phenyleneethynylenes containing the BINOL core was observed. The strong fluorescence of the dendrimers allows a very small amount of the chiral materials to be used for sensing. The light harvesting antennas of the dendrimer funnel energy to the center BINOL unit, whose hydroxyl groups upon interaction with a quencher molecule lead to fluorescence quenching. This mechanism makes the dendrimers have much more sensitive fluorescence responses than corresponding small molecule sensors. The fluorescence of these dendrimers can be enantioselectively quenched by chiral amino alcohols. It is observed that the fluorescence lifetime of the generation two dendrimer does not change in the presence of various concentrations of 2-amino-3-phenyl-1-propanol. This demonstrates that the fluorescence quenching is entirely due to static quenching. Thus, formation of nonfluorescent ground-state hydrogen-bond complexes between the dendrimers and amino alcohols is proposed to account for the fluorescent quenching. A linear relationship has been established between the Stern-V?lmer constant of the generation two dendrimer and the enantiomeric composition of 2-amino-3-phenyl-1-propanol. Such enantioselective fluorescent sensors may allow a rapid determination of the enantiomeric composition of chiral molecules and are potentially useful in the combinatorial search of asymmetric catalysts and reagents.     

Synthesis and photophysical properties of triphenylamine-based dendrimers with 1,3,5-triphenylbenzene cores

Two new conjugated dendrimers bearing a triphenylamine moiety as dendrons and 1,3,5-triphenylbenzene as a core have been synthesized through a convergent synthetic strategy. These conjugated dendrimers have high fluorescence quantum yields and exhibit similar absorption and emission behaviors in solutions and in solid films, which demonstrate that these dendrimers form good amorphous states.     

Polyvalent scaffolds. Counting the number of seats available for eosin guest molecules in viologen-based host dendrimers

We have prepared and investigated two dendrimers based on a 1,3,5-trisubstituted benzenoid-type core, containing 9 and 21 viologen units in their branches, respectively, and terminated with tetraarylmethane derivatives. We have shown that, in dichloromethane solution, such highly charged cationic species give rise to strong host-guest complexes with the dianionic form of the red dye eosin. Upon complexation, the absorption spectrum of eosin becomes broader and is slightly displaced toward lower energies, whereas the strong fluorescence of eosin is completely quenched. Titration experiments based on fluorescence measurements have shown that each viologen unit in the dendrimers becomes associated with an eosin molecule, so that the number of positions ("seats") available for the guest molecules in the hosting dendrimer is clearly established, e.g., 21 for the larger of the two dendrimers. The host-guest interaction can be destroyed by addition of chloride ions, a procedure which permits eosin to escape from the dendrimer's interior in a controlled way and to regain its intense fluorescence. When chloride anions are precipitated out by addition of silver cations, eosin molecules re-enter the dendrimer's interior and their fluorescence again disappears.     

Donor-acceptor interactions in red-emitting thienylbenzene-branched dendrimers with benzothiadiazole core

Synthesis and characterization of dendrimers containing thienylbenzene repeating units, red-emitting benzothiadiazole core, and triarylamine peripheries that bear naphthyl units are reported. The relevant dendrimers of different generations are classified as G(nb) (n=1-3), while the tert-butyl dendrimers G(na) with the acceptor alone were also synthesized to serve as control chromophores that avoid donor-acceptor interactions. The resulting dendrimers are capable of harvesting photon energy through efficient energy transfer among donor-acceptor moieties, so that highly luminescent red fluorophores result. Transient fluorescence studies suggest that the energy transfer and its efficiency are approximately unity in all G(a) dendrimers, whereas the rate of energy transfer for the G(b) dendrimers is suppressed, that is, charge transfer from the core to the periphery is a significant quenching pathway. These dendrimers are amorphous in nature with high glass transition temperatures (176-201 degrees C). Electroluminescent devices were fabricated by using the dendrimers as hole-transporting emitters, and the devices exhibit promising red emission parameters.     

Convergent synthesis of platinum-acetylide dendrimers

An efficient convergent route to the main chain type of organometallic dendrimers, in which platinum moieties are linked by 1,3,5-triethynylbenzene, has been developed. The synthesis of platinum-acetylide dendrons involved the use of two types of trialkylsilyl groups for protection of the terminal acetylene. The platinum-acetylide dendrimers were prepared up to the third generation by reacting dendrons with a triplatinum core and a tetraplatinum core. Spectroscopic characterization and trace experiments by gel permeation chromatography indicated that the dendrimer molecules have no structural defects. Although a pi-conjugated system was used as the bridging ligand, electronic and fluorescence spectra suggested that the interaction among the platinum-acetylide moieties in the dendrimers was small.     

An alternative convergent synthesis of dendrimers with 2,5-diarylsilole at the core

Dendrimers with 2,5-diarylsilole at the core are readily synthesized by the Ni-catalyzed reaction of 1,1,2,2-tetramethyldisilane and 1,6-diynes having poly(benzyl ether)-dendron units. The dendrimers display, upon excitation of the silole ring, an emission at about 500 nm. The fluorescence quantum yield of the dendrimers increases with increasing the generation of the dendron units. In addition, upon excitation of dendron units in the periphery, the dendrimers also display an emission from the silole ring at the core through the energy transfer from the dendron units to the silole core within the dendrimers.     

Host-guest complexes between an aromatic molecular tweezer and symmetric and unsymmetric dendrimers with a 4,4'-bipyridinium core

We have investigated the spectroscopic and electrochemical behavior of symmetric and unsymmetric first-, second-, and third-generation dendrimers comprising an electron-acceptor 4,4'-bipyridinium core (viologen type) and electron-donor 1,3-dimethyleneoxybenzene (Fréchet-type) dendrons. The quite strong fluorescence of the symmetrically and unsymmetrically disubstituted 1,3-dimethyleneoxybenzene units of the dendrons is completely quenched as a result of donor-acceptor interactions that are also evidenced by a low-energy tail in the absorption spectrum. In dichloromethane solution, the 4,4'-bipyridinium cores of the investigated dendrimers are hosted by a molecular tweezer comprising a naphthalene and four benzene components bridged by four methylene units. Host-guest formation causes the quenching of the tweezer fluorescence. The association constants, as measured from fluorescence and (1)H NMR titration plots, (i) are of the order of 10(4) M(-1), (ii) decrease on increasing dendrimer generation, and (iii) are slightly larger for the unsymmetric than for the symmetric dendrimer of the same generation. The analysis of the complexation-induced shifts of the temperature-dependent (1)H NMR signals of the host and guest protons confirms that the bipyridinium core is positioned inside the tweezer cavity and allows the conclusions that (i) shuttling of the tweezer from one to the other pyridinium ring is fast (DeltaG < 10 kcal/mol), (ii) in the case of the unsymmetric dendrimers, the less substituted pyridinium ring is preferentially complexed in apolar solvents, and (iii) complexation of the 4,4'-bipyridinium core proceeds by clipping for the symmetric dendrimers and by threading in the case of unsymmetric ones. Host-guest formation causes a displacement of the first reduction wave of the 4,4'-bipyridinium unit toward more negative potential values, whereas the second reduction wave is unaffected. These results show that the host-guest complexes between the tweezer and the dendrimers are stabilized by electron donor-acceptor interactions and can be reversibly assembled/disassembled by electrochemical stimulation.     

Fluorescent Hydroxylamine Derived from the Fragmentation of PAMAM Dendrimers for Intracellular Hypochlorite Recognition

Herein, a promising sensing approach based on the structure fragmentation of poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers for the selective detection of intracellular hypochlorite (OCl^?) is reported. PAMAM dendrimers were easily disrupted by a cascade of oxidations in the tertiary amines of the dendritic core to produce an unsaturated hydroxylamine with blue fluorescence. Specially, the novel fluorophore was only sensitive to OCl^?, one of reactive oxygen species (ROS), resulting in an irreversible fluorescence turn‐off. The fluorescent hydroxylamine was selectively oxidised by OCl^? to form a labile oxoammonium cation that underwent further degradation. Without using any troublesomely synthetic steps, the novel sensing platform based on the fragmentation of PAMAM dendrimers, can be applied to detect OCl^? in macrophage cells. The results suggest that the sensing approach may be useful for the detection of intracellular OCl^? with minimal interference from biological matrixes.     

Photochemistry and photophysics of stilbene dendrimers and related compounds

The syntheses and reactions of photoresponsive dendrimers are described. Dendrimers with photoreversible stilbene cores undergo mutual cis–trans isomerization in organic solvents to give photostationary state mixtures of cis- and trans-isomers. Even stilbene dendrimers with molecular weights as high as 6500 underwent mutual cis–trans isomerization within the lifetime of the excited singlet state. The large dendron group surrounding the photoreactive core may affect the excited state properties of the core to induce the efficiency of photoisomerization and/or reduce the fluorescence efficiency. The photochemistry of stilbene dendrimers, with various types of dendron groups, azobenzene dendrimers and other photoresposive dendrimers is discussed.     

Relationship between incoherent excitation energy migration processes and molecular structures in zinc(II) porphyrin dendrimers

Multiporphyrin dendrimers are among the most promising architectures to mimic the oxygenic light-harvesting complex because of their structural similarities and synthetic convenience. The overall geometries of dendrimers are determined by the core structure, the type of dendron, and the number of generations of interior repeating units. The rigid core and bulky volume of exterior porphyrin units in multiporphyrin dendrimers give rise to well-ordered three-dimensional structures. As the number of generations of interior repeating units increases, however, the overall structures of dendrimers become disordered and randomized due to the flexibility of the repeating units. To reveal the relationship between molecular structure and processes of excitation-energy migration in multiporphyrin dendrimers, we calculated the molecular structure and measured the time-resolved transient absorption and fluorescence anisotropy decays for various hexaarylbenzene-anchored polyester zinc(II) porphyrin dendrimers along with three types of porphyrin dendrons as references. We found that the congested two-branched type dendrimers exhibit more efficient energy migration processes than one- or three-branched type dendrimers because of multiple energy migration pathways, and the three-dimensional packing efficiency of dendrimers strongly depends on the type of dendrons.     

Enhancement of entrapping ability of dendrimers by a cubic silsesquioxane core

We report that a polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) core can enhance the entrapping ability of dendrimers. Compared to the G2 PAMAM dendrimer, the G2 POSS-core dendrimer can entrap a larger amount of guest molecules without loss of affinity, and consequently, the water solubility of the entrapped guest molecules can be increased. In addition, we demonstrated that a fluorophore entrapped in the G2 POSS-core dendrimer was prevented from undergoing fluorescence photobleaching.     

Efficient synthesis of porphyrin-containing,benzoquinone-terminated,rigid polyphenylene dendrimers

A series of rigid polyphenylene, free-base porphyrin-containing dendrimers terminated with either dimethoxybenzene or benzoquinone end-groups were prepared by a combined divergent and convergent synthesis. Unlike previous routes for preparing polyphenylene dendrimers that are incompatible with end-groups bearing certain functional moieties, the synthetic methodology chosen for this work enables incorporation of functional groups on the dendrimer end-groups during preparation of the dendrimer wedges and during synthesis of the final dendrimer. The basic strategy utilized a convergent preparation of dendrimer wedges using Suzuki coupling conditions, which were then either attached to a porphyrin core in a divergent coupling step or cyclized to form the porphyrin dendrimer in a convergent step. The latter approach was found to be more general and resulted in higher yields and more readily separated products. Steady-state absorption measurements for these dendrimers showed Soret and Q-band absorptions typical of free-base porphyrins. Preliminary steady-state fluorescence measurements of these dendrimers indicate quenching of the S1 state of the free-base porphyrin in all benzoquinone-containing dendrimers that is attributed to efficient electron-transfer from the excited porphyrin to the benzoquinone end-groups. The amount of fluorescence quenching was in good agreement with the number of benzoquinone groups at the dendrimer periphery and the distance between the porphyrin and benzoquinone groups as calculated by semiempirical (AM1) molecular orbital calculations.