Nopinone-based aggregation-induced emission (AIE)-active difluoroboron β-diketonate complex: photophysical, electrochemical and electroluminescence properties.

Four difluoroboron (BF 2 ) β-diketonate nopinone complexes 3a-3d that exhibited typical aggregation-induced emission (AIE) properties were synthesized using the natural renewable β-pinene derivative nopinone as the starting material. The thermal, photophysical, electrochemical and electroluminescent properties as well as the AIE properties of complexes 3a-3d were analyzed systematically. The data of photophysical and electrochemical demonstrated that compound 3b with a methoxy group exhibited the largest bathochromic shift, the highest absolute photoluminescence quantum yields and narrowest optical bandgap among 3a-3d. Using 3b as the emitter, electroluminescent (EL) device I exhibits blue-green light with CIE coordinates of (0.2774, 0.4531) and showed a better performance with a luminous efficacy ( η p ) of 7.09 lm W -1 and correlated color temperature ( T C ) of 7028 K. The results demonstrate that new AIE compounds are promising solid-state luminescent materials with practical utility in electroluminescent materials.