Boron difluoride complexes of 2′-hydroxychalcones and curcuminoids as fluorescent dyes for photonic applications

The field of fluorescent boron complexes has witnessed tremendous developments in recent years. In that context, we have investigated two series of boron difluoride complexes based on 2′-hydroxychalcone and curcuminoid ligands that represent naturally occurring pigment structures. The dyes display significantly large Stokes shift values, indicating that an ICT state is involved as lower-energy state in the singlet manifold. Remarkably they are also fluorescent in the solid-state, with emission wavelengths usually in the visible and mainly in the near infrared (NIR). It is especially intriguing that those dyes experience strong π-interactions in the crystal phase. We have observed that the formation of those highly stacked structures was not detrimental to solid-state emission and could even be exploited for the generation of efficient NIR emitters. For example, the boron complexes of curcuminoid ligands can be used to generate NIR fluorescent organic nanoparticles with large cross sections for two-photon absorption. The design of organic dyes displaying NIR emission in solution or in the solid-state remains challenging for applications in bioimaging and organic photonics.