Aryl-Decorated Ru(II) Polypyridyl-type Photosensitizer Approaching NIR Emission with Microsecond Excited State Lifetimes.

Bis-tridentate Ru(II) complexes based on the dqp scaffold (dqp is 2,6-di(quinolin-8-yl)pyridine) with multiple aryl substituents were explored to tailor the absorption and emission properties. A synthetic methodology was developed for the facile synthesis and purification of homo- and heteroleptic bis-tridentate Ru complexes. The effect of the aryl substituents in the para positions of the pyridine and quinoline subunits was detailed by X-ray crystallography, steady state and time-resolved spectroscopy, electrochemistry, and computational methods.