Synthesis of 2,6-diethyl-3-methacroyloxymethyl-1,5,7,8-tetramethylpyrromethene-BF2 for the preparation of new solid-state laser dyes

The synthesis of 2,6-diethyl-3-methacroyloxymethyl-1,5,7,8-tetramethylpyrromethene-BF₂ (2) was carried out in straightforward fashion from 2,6-diethyl-1,3,5,7,8-pentamethylpyrromethene-BF₂ (1) in three steps. The monomer unit 2 has been shown to be useful for copolymerization with methyl methacrylate for the synthesis of new solid-state optical materials. In addition, the synthesis of 1 has been modified to give greater yields of this useful laser dye. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.