Green electrogenerated chemiluminescence using a quinacridone derivative as a guest molecule

Abstract

We have developed a solution-based green electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) cell using a quinacridone derivative, 5,12-dibutyl-1,3,8,10-tetramethylquinacridone (TMDBQA), as a fluorescent guest. 2-tert-Butyl-9,10-di(naphth-2-yl)anthracene (TBADN) and 4,4′-bis[4-(diphenylamino)styryl]biphenyl (BDAVBi) were used as host and assist dopant molecules, respectively, and dissolved in an organic solvent with the guest. When a direct current voltage of 5.5 V was applied, the microfluidic ECL cell, which has a 5-μm-thick microchannel sandwiched between two transparent electrodes, exhibited bright green emission from TMDBQA with a maximum luminance of 40.9 cd/m2 and a maximum current efficiency of 2.25 cd/A. However, if both TBADN and BDAVBi were absent from the solution, ECL emission was not observed. Thus, a possible mechanism for the efficient ECL emission of TMDBQA is proposed, involving a two-step energy transfer from TBADN through BDAVBi. We believe that the concept of host–guest solutions will be useful in developing novel light-emitting devices.

Keywords

• Electrogenerated chemiluminescence
• Green emission
• Quinacridone derivative
• Host-guest system
• Energy transfer
• Microfluidic ECL cells