Synthesis and photophysical properties of tetrafluorophenyl-modified carbazole oligomers

A series of tetrafluorophenyl-modified oligo(3,6-carbazole ethynylene)s (CfCzCf, CfCz2Cf, CfCz3Cf, (CfCz)2Cf, and Cf2CzCf2) were synthesized by a Pd/Cu-catalyzed Sonogashira coupling reaction and fully characterized. Their photophysical and electronic properties as well as their thermal stabilities were investigated. It is noteworthy that these tetrafluorophenyl modified compounds showed relative thermal stabilities and low-lying HOMO levels ranging from −5.54 to −5.60 eV, which might be the promising candidates for hole-transporting materials in OLEDs.