Luminescence and Stability of 1,4,5-Triaryl-1,2,3-Triazoles

The fluorescence, phosphorescence, and photochemical properties of di- and triaryl-substituted-1,2,3-triazoles are reported in this work. The ease of synthesis of regioisomers of substituted triazoles enables a systematic study on the correlation between regiochemistry and excited state properties, which include the solvent dependence of fluorescence, energy gap between singlet and triplet emitters, and propensity to photon-triggered transformations. The triazoles that carry electron (e)-donor and e-acceptor aryl substituents show high fluorescence quantum yields in weakly polar solvents and exhibit solvent-dependent fluorescence. The luminescence properties of these compounds in glass matrices at 77 K are characterized. The thermal and photo-stability, two parameters that are crucial to their potential utilities in optical devices, of these compounds are determined. The position of the e-donor substituent has a significant impact on the fluorescence emission energy and solvent sensitivity, singlet-triplet energy gap, and photochemical reactivity and stability. The experimental observations on the structural correlation with the photophysical and photochemical properties are explained by quantum chemical calculations. This study provides a rationale on the placement of substituent on a donor-acceptor type fluorophore to maneuver a range of photo-related properties.