| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 175432 | Dyes and Pigments | 2016 | 10 Pages |
•A novel tetrahydroquinoline-containing chromophore NT had been synthesized.•The Td of the new chromophore is 42 °C higher than that of chromophore FTC.•The r33 value of film-NT/APC is six times higher than that of film-TPA/APC.
A novel chromophore based on N-(4-dibutylaminophenyl)tetrahydroquinolinyl donor group was synthesized to compare with traditional chromophores based on either diethylaminophenyl or triarylaminophenyl donor groups. Cyclic voltammetry measurements showed that the new chromophore had a much smaller energy gap than the structurally related chromophores. Density functional theory calculations suggested that the molecular quadratic hyperpolarizability (μβ) value of tetrahydroquinolinyl chromophore is 65% and 110% larger than that of either the diethylaminophenyl or triarylaminophenyl chromophores, respectively. The doped film containing the tetrahydroquinolinyl chromophore showed an r33 value of 126 pm/V at the concentration of 25 wt% which is much higher than the electro-optic activity of the diethylaminophenyl derived chromophore (39 pm/V) and six times higher than that of the traditional triarylaminophenyl chromophore (19 pm/V). The tetrahydroquinolinyl chromophore possesses much higher thermal stability (with its onset decomposition temperature above 280 °C) than those of commonly used alkyl chromophores.
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