Asymmetrically 9,10-disubstituted anthracenes as soluble and stable blue electroluminescent molecular glasses

Asymmetrically 9,10-disubstituted anthracene derivatives 1a/1b have been synthesized and characterized. The new compounds exhibit a high solubility and can be easily purified by chromatographic methods. Thin solid films based on these compounds combine intrinsic amorphous morphology with pure blue emission and high solid-state photoluminescent efficiencies. These materials have been used as solution-processed active emitters in electroluminescent devices leading to interesting device performances. The effect of partial fluorination of a sub-unit of one of the compounds on the properties of the material is discussed. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.