Synthesis and Characterization of Phosphorescent Platinum and Iridium Complexes with Cyclometalated Corannulene

Abstract

The study of fullerenes has inspired chemists to understand and probe the structural and electronic properties of these compounds, as well as spurred investigation into application of these molecules. Corannulene, nicknamed “buckybowl”, has been described as the smallest fullerene fragment that retains curvature. As a result of its unique structure, corannulene has been proposed for use in many promising applications ranging from charge transport to end caps for nanotubes. One interesting property exhibited by corannulene as a result of its curvature is dynamic bowl-to-bowl inversion in solution. Cyclometalated iridium and platinum complexes have been studied extensively due to their efficient phosphorescence that is, promoted by strong intersystem crossing from the heavy metal center. The photophysical properties of these metal complexes strongly depend not only on the metal center, but also on the chemical structures of the cyclometalated ligands.