Fluorescence response of pyridinyl- and/or dibutylaniline-capped 2,6,9,10-tetravinylanthracenes to metal ions

Abstract The solution photophysical properties of a series of dibutylaniline- and/or pyridine-containing 2,6,9,10-tetrarylvinylanthracene cruciforms with and without metal ions have been determined. The results show that the dibutylaniline-containing cruciforms show stronger intermolecular charge transfer and obviously red-shifted emission spectra than the only pyridine-containing ones, and fluorescence responses of these cruciforms to select several metal ions are also different. The alkali K + , alkaline-earth Mg 2+ and Ca 2+ hardly affect the emission behavior, but the transition Cu 2+ and Zn 2+ could red-shift, blue-shift or quench the fluorescence emissions, depending on the nature of end groups. The fluorescence responsive behaviors of the different cruciforms to metal ions are explained qualitatively through their spatially separated frontier molecular orbital (FMO) features and coordination-induced FMO changes. These findings suggest that these anthracene-centered cruciforms could be promising functional scaffolds selectively for differential transition metal sensor arrays.