Diamines as auxiliary ligands for tuning photophysical and electrochemical properties of Ruthenium(II) polypyridyl complexes

The complex with the formula [Ru(bpy)2(2,3-diaminonaphthalene)][PF6] (5) was synthesized and characterized by 1H NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry and elemental analysis. A set of previously reported complexes with the formula [Ru(bpy)2(diamine)][PF6]{diamine = 1,2-diaminoethane (2), o-phenylenediamine (3), 1,2-diaminocyclohexane (4) } was synthesized and crystal structures were obtained for complexes 3 and 4. UV–vis absorption spectra of the complexes 2–5 were collected and compared to that of [Ru(bpy)3][PF6]2 (1), showing that the MLCT band is red-shifted upon introducing the diamine ligands in place of bipyridine. Emission spectra, excited-state lifetimes and emission quantum yields were collected at room temperature for the complexes 1–5, showing considerable changes in the photophysical characteristics upon the introductions of the diamine. The emission spectrum of 5 exhibits an intense emission in the far red-NIR region when excited at 510 nm. The cyclic voltammograms of the complexes 1–5 show one oxidation peak between 0.98 V and 1.15 V which is attributed to the Ru(II)/Ru(III) oxidation couple. Calculated HOMO and LUMO energy levels from both electrochemical data and theoretical calculations suggest a lower HOMO energy level for complex 1 than the diamino-containing complexes, presumably due to the stronger ligand field of the bipyridine.