Photochemical synthesis of pyrene perfluoroalkyl derivatives and their embedding in a polymethylmethacrylate matrix: a spectroscopic and structural study

A photochemical, alternative and eco-compatible approach to perfluoroalkyl derivatives of pyrene is presented. The perfluoroalkyl chain is regiospecifically introduced at the 1 position of pyrene. The synthesized products have been embedded in a polymethylmethacrylate matrix by photocuring at 365 nm. Both the photochemical reactions can be considered a “green tool” for the synthetic chemist in order to obtain materials with prospective optoelectronic applications. The so-obtained composites have been the object of a study by UV and fluorescence spectroscopy in order to explore their luminescence properties. The small angle X-ray scattering and the transmission electron microscopy techniques were used to investigate the microstructure. A correlation between the optical and the structural properties is herein presented.