Luminescent host-host systems based on coordination compounds: Synthesis, characterization and applications
This project focuses on the design, synthesis and characterization of hybrid host matrices, obtained by the sol-gel methodology, incorporated with transition metal complexes. The most attractive characteristics of these complexes are the wide variety of optical and electronic properties that can be modulated by molecular engineering, through the exchange of the metal ion, the ligand or the medium, in addition to their stability in the presence of a wide variety of ligands. Particular interest has been dedicated to the Ir(III) complexes, due to their great photophysical potential. Generally, these complexes exhibit intense emission, in a tunable color range (from blue to near-infrared), with high quantum emission yields and relatively low excited state lifetimes (usually hundreds of nanoseconds), which are desirable characteristics for luminescent devices. Iridium compounds are also efficient sensitizers of singlet oxygen, via energy transfer between complex and molecular oxygen, a property of the complexes that can be explored in photodynamic therapy and intracellular theranostics. Therefore, in this work, different heteroleptic Ir(III) complexes have been synthesized and their photophysical properties investigated in different solid matrices, obtaining important perspectives for the development of more stable and more efficient light-emitting systems, as well as the development of functional materials for biophotonic applications.