Luminescent Cu(I) and Ag(I) coordination polymers: Fast phosphorescence or thermally activated delayed fluorescence

Abstract By applying two donor-acceptor motif molecules, 5,10-di(pyridin-4-yl)-5,10-dihydrophenazine (L1) and 10,10'-di(pyridin-3-yl)-10H,10'H-9,9'-spiroacridine (L2), as ligands and CuI/AgCF3CO2 as metal salt, we synthesized three coordination polymers, namely, {Cu4(L1)2I4} (CP1), {Cu(L2)I·CHCl3} (CP2) and {Ag(L2)CO2CF3·CHCl3} (CP3). X-ray crystallographic analysis revealed that three coordination polymers all feature one-dimensional (1D) linear chains which are consisting of molecular boxlike units. In comparison with low photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of two ligands, three coordination polymers, CP1, CP2 and CP3, present more intense photoluminescence with PLQY of 15%, 46% and 34% at room temperature respectively. The PL emission of CP1 and CP2 at room temperature could be attributed to the fast phosphorescence with lifetime both around 5 μs due to effective intersystem crossing (ISC). Whilst, it is worth noting that CP3 exhibit thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) emission at room temperature.