Boron Subphthalocyanine Dyes: 3-Pentadecylphenol as a Solubilizing Molecular Fragment

Abstract

We report the synthesis and characterization of a series of boronsubphthalocyanine (BsubPc) dyes which have organic solubility >10–2 M while being amenable to doping into polymeric films. To achieve high solubility we have placed the 3-pentadecylphenoxy molecular fragment in a variety of positions within the BsubPc chemical structure including around the periphery of the BsubPc ligand and in the axial position to the boron atom. We have found that placement of the 3-pentadecylphenoxy molecular fragment around the periphery adversely affects the photostability of the resulting BsubPc whereas placement in the axial position has little effect. We also confirm that the presence of fluorine atoms around the periphery improves the photostability. Overall we present a systematic study of the 3-pentadecylphenoxy fragment as a solubilizing moiety for BsubPc. The nature of the substituents and their position does not affect the nearly pure magenta color characteristic of BsubPc derivatives.