Regioselective Photocyclizations of Di(quinolinyl)arylamines and Tri(quinolinyl)amine with Emission Color Changes and Photoreaction-Induced Self-Assemblies.

Bis[2,4-di(trifluoromethyl)quinoline-7-yl]amine (1), bis[2,4-di(trifluoromethyl)quinoline-7-yl]methylamine (2), bis[2,4-di(trifluoromethyl)quinoline-7-yl]phenylamine derivatives, Q2 NPhX; X=NO2 (3 a), I (3 b), H (3 c), OMe (3 d), and NH2 (3 e), tris[2,4-di(trifluoromethyl)quinoline-7-yl]amine (4), and bis[2,4-di(pentafluoroethyl)quinoline-7-yl]-4-nitrophenylamine (5) were prepared as functional fluorophores. On irradiating the solution samples, 1 showed no noticeable alteration, whereas 2, 3 a-d, and 4 showed emission color changes from yellowish green to blue, indicating that a photoreaction took place. Analyses of the photoproduct based on absorption and emission spectra, (1) H NMR spectra, and X-ray crystallography indicated that photocyclization reactions occurred regioselectively and quantitatively to form bent-bent dipyridocarbazoles. In 3 a-d, the reaction rates depended on the solvent polarity and the substituent on the benzene ring. The photoreactions were accelerated with decreasing solvent polarity and with increasing electron-withdrawing character of the substituents. The photocyclization of triquinolineamine 4 was faster than that of 3 a in all solvents. The results of semiempirical quantum-chemical PM6 calculations suggested that the observed regioselective photocyclization could be explained by stabilization of the excited triplet transition state for the bent-bent form because of the molecular geometry with the CH-NQ hydrogen bonds. The solution of 5 in MeOH displayed photoreaction-induced self-assembly behavior to form twisted tape-like fibers of width 200 nm, as determined by TEM imaging.