Rationally designed two-photon absorption compounds based on benzoxazole derivatives: structure-property relationships and bio-imaging applications.

A new series of benzoxazole-based two-photon absorption (2PA) chromophores (T1-5) were synthesized and fully characterized. Among them, T1-3 are linear donor (D)-π-acceptor (A) type fluorophores with various electron-donating groups, while T4 and T5 are multi-branched compounds stemming from T3. Their photophysical properties have been systematically investigated, and the two-photon absorption properties indicate that the highest 2PA cross-section (σ) is 2702 GM for T5 (in DMF).

Application and recognition behaviors of TPA-cored probes with subtle structural change.

Two new triphenylamine-cored probes (L1, L2) with different receptor units have been synthesized and fully characterized by IR, NMR and MS spectra. Their photophysical properties have been investigated in detail. The recognition abilities of two probes were evaluated by a series of metal ions, which showed that L1 could recognize Cu(2+) over other metal ions.