Synthesis, complexation, and fluorescence behavior of armed crown ethers carrying naphthyl group

Armed crown ethers (1-4) bonding through an amine, amide, ether, or ester linkage to naphthyl group were found to display unique photophysical properties in the presence of guest salts. Complexation of PET fluoroionophores (1a and 1b) with Zn(2+) increased the fluorescence intensities of the host by a factor of 2.4 and 2.7, respectively. (1)H and (13)C NMR analyses of this complexation behavior of 1a revealed that Zn(2+) strongly coordinates with the armed crown nitrogen to cause a dramatic decrease in an intramolecular charge-transfer character. The armed crowns (2 and 3), bonding through an ether or ester linkage to a naphthalene, gave fluorescence quenching with guest thiocyanates. While the amide derivative (4) exhibited high Ba(2+) fluorescence selectivity and in the presence of this cation the host fluorescence intensity was by a factor of 3.69.