Spectral properties of several fluorene derivatives with potential as two-photon fluorescent dyes

Investigations of the absorption, steady-state fluorescence, excitation and excitation anisotropy properties of several fluorene derivatives, (7-benzothiazol-2-yl-9,9-didecylfluoren-2-yl)-diphenylamine, 9,9-didecyl-2,7-bis-(N,N-diphenylamino)fluorene and {4-[2-(7-diphenylamino-9,9-diethylfluoren-2-yl)vinyl]phenyl}phosphoric acid diethyl ester, in liquid solutions have been conducted. Spectral characteristics of these compounds, including fluorescence quantum yields, were measured in acetonitrile, methylene chloride, tetrahydrofuran and hexane at room temperature. Excitation anisotropy spectra provided a means to determine the nature of the short wavelength absorption bands as an electronic transition into a higher excited singlet state. It was found that excitation spectra in the short wavelength region do not correspond to the absorption bands that are correlated with the wavelength dependence of the fluorescence quantum yields. Major reasons of such spectral behavior are discussed.