Germylenes Exhibiting Solid-State Emissions that Extend to NIR

Low-valent main group compounds that fluoresce in the solid-state were previously unknown. To address this, we investigated room-temperature photoluminescence from a series of crystals of germylenes 3-8 in this article; they exhibited emissions nearly reaching the NIR. Germylene carboxylates (3-8) were synthesized by reacting dipyrromethene stabilized germylene pyrrolide (2) with carboxylic acids such as acetic acid, trifluoroacetic acid, benzoic acid, p-cyanobenzoic acid, p-nitrobenzoic acid, and acetylsalicylic acid. Solid-state photoluminescence of low-valent main group element compounds is investigated for the first time using stable germylene carboxylates. Apart from showing room-temperature photoluminescence, these carboxylates exhibited significant differences in their solid- and solution-state emissions.image

Automated summary

This article investigates the solid-state photoluminescence of stable germylene carboxylates for the first time. The study reveals that these compounds exhibit near-infrared emissions at room temperature, opening up new possibilities for low-valent main group element compounds to emit light in the solid-state.