Aggregation-Induced Emission and Biological Application of Tetraphenylethene Luminogens

Tetraphenylethene derivatives [Ph(PhCH=CHPhR)C=C(PhCH=CHPhR)Ph, R=H, CN, NO2, NPh2] with green, yellow-green, and orange emission colours were designed and synthesized. These molecules are practically non-emissive in their dilute solutions but emit intensely as nanoaggregates in poor solvents, demonstrating a novel phenomenon of aggregation-induced emission. Their blended films with poly(methyl methacrylate) also display bright emissions. Restriction of intramolecular motion in the condensed phase may be responsible for such unusual behaviour. Multilayer electroluminescence devices with a configuration of indium tin oxide/N,N'-di(1-naphthyl)-N,N'-diphenylbenzidine/emitter/tris(8-hydroxyquinolinolato)aluminum (Alq3)/LiF/Al were constructed, which gave green light with a maximum luminance and current efficiency of 12930 cd cm–2 and 3.04 cd A–1 respectively. The tetraphenylethenes can serve as excellent cell staining agents for selectively illuminating the cytoplasm and vesicles of living cells.