Excellent blue fluorescent trispirobifluorenes: synthesis, optical properties and thermal behaviors

Tetraiodotrispirobifluorene (1) was synthesized through cyclization of 2,7-diiodofluorene with pentaerythrityl tetrabromide under base condition. Subsequent treatment of 1 with arylboronic acid or arylacetylene under Pd-catalyzed coupling condition led to corresponding tetraaryl trispirobifluorenes (3–8). These trispirobifluorene derivatives exhibited bright-violet to blue photoluminescence (PL) with excellent quantum efficiencies and showed high thermal stabilities. ‘Green-emission tail’ could not be detected for those tetraaryl substituted trispirobifluorenes (3–8) annealed both in N2 and in air.