Fully Conjugated Pyrene–BODIPY and Pyrene–BODIPY–Ferrocene Dyads and Triads: Synthesis, Characterization, and Selective Noncovalent Interactions with Nanocarbon Materials

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Abstract
Several pyrene–boron-dipyrromethene (BODIPY) and pyrene–BODIPY–ferrocene derivatives with a fully conjugated pyrene fragment appended to the α-position(s) of the BODIPY core have been prepared by Knoevenagel condensation reaction and characterized by one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), UV–vis, fluorescence spectroscopy, high-resolution mass spectrometry as well as X-ray crystallography. The redox properties of new donor–acceptor BODIPY dyads and triads were studied by electrochemical (cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV)) and spectroelectrochemical approaches. Formation of weakly bonded noncovalent complexes between the new pyrene–BODIPYs and nanocarbon materials (C60, C70, single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT), and graphene) was studied by UV–vis, steady-state fluorescent, and time-resolved transient absorption spectroscopy. UV–vis and fluorescent spectroscopy are indicative of the much stronger and selective interaction between new dyes and (6,5)-SWCNT as well as graphene compared to that of C60 and C70 fullerenes. In agreement with these data, transient absorption spectroscopy provided no evidence for any significant change in excited-state lifetime or photoinduced charge transfer between pyrene–BODIPYs and C60 or C70 fullerenes when the pyrene–BODIPY chromophores were excited into the lowest-energy singlet excited state. Density functional theory (DFT) and time-dependent DFT (TDDFT) calculations suggest that the pyrene fragments are fully conjugated into the π-system of BODIPY core, which correlates well with the experimental data.
Funding Information
  • Division of Chemistry (CHE-1464711)
  • Canada Foundation for Innovation
  • Western Canada Research Grid
  • University of Manitoba
  • University of Tennessee
  • Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
  • Minnesota Supercomputing Institute

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