High-performance deep-blue emitting phenanthroimidazole derivatives with a structure of donor−linker−acceptor were designed and synthesized. By using different linkers and different linking positions, four deep-blue emitters were obtained and used as emitters or bifunctional hole-transporting emitters in OLEDs. Such devices show low turn-on voltages (as low as 2.8 V), high efficiency (2.63 cd/A, 2.53 lm/W, 3.08%), little efficiency roll-off at high current densities, and stable deepblue emissions with CIE y < 0.10. Performances are among the best comparing to recently reported deep-blue emitting devices with similar structures. The results suggest that the combination of the phenanthroimidazole and the donor−linker− acceptor structure can be an important approach for developing high performance deep-blue emitters in particular for lighting applications.

Two series of new tetracyclic pyrazolo[3,4-b]pyridine-based coumarin chromophores were synthesized through a facile reaction between 3-aldehyde-7-diethylaminocoumarin (5) or 3-acetyl-7-diethylaminocoumarin (6) and 5-aminopyrazole derivatives (7) in a one-pot procedure. Different condensed products were obtained from compounds 5 and 6, and the potential reaction mechanism was studied using the reaction of 5 with 5-amino-1-phenylpyrazole (7a). The molecular structures were characterized by NMR and HRMS and confirmed by X-ray diffraction. The photophysical, electrochemical, and thermal properties of these compounds were investigated by absorption spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, single photon counting technique, cyclic voltammetry, thermogravimetric analysis, etc. Results show that the compounds exhibited high fluorescence quantum yields and good electrochemical, thermal, and photochemical stabilities. In addition, the application of these highly fluorescent compounds in living cell imaging was also explored by laser scanning confocal microscopy.

A new series of intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) molecules were synthesized by attaching various strong electron-withdrawing groups to a triphenylamine backbone. Relationships between chemical structures and optoelectronic properties of these compounds were investigated with X-ray diffraction, cyclic voltammetry, absorption spectroscopy, and density functional theory calculations. It is shown that the compounds exhibit intensive ICT interactions leading to substantial extension of their absorption spectral response, which may be potentially used for efficient solar cells.