Tetraphenylene-chalcone hybrid derivatives: Synthesis, structural, fluorescence properties and imaging in living cells

Abstract Tetraphenylene-chalcones hybrid derivatives (TPE-T, TPE-B, TPE-N and TPE-Q) have been designed and synthesized, and their optical properties have also been investigated. These new organic fluorophores exhibited relatively large Stokes shifts and absorption extinction coefficients, solvation effects, and some of them also showed moderate AIE effects and solid fluorescence. More significantly, TPE-N shows good fluorescence emission (solution, solid and aggregation states). Single-crystal analysis indicates that molecular stacking patterns are the critical reason affecting the optical properties in solid state. Theoretical calculation explain the fluorescence behaviors because of ICT processes. It has been further demonstrated that these organic fluorophores can be employed for imaging in living cells.