Study of the one-photon and two-photon properties of two water-soluble terpyridines and their zinc complexes.

Two water soluble 2,2':6',2''-terpyridine derivatives (TPYOH and O3TPY) with a di(hydroxyethyl)amino or a long (2-(2-methoxyethoxy)ethoxy)benzyl group, respectively, were designed and synthesized. The two terpyridine ligands and their Zn(ii) complexes display strong one-photon fluorescence. An unusually large solvatochromism effect in ethanol and water was found, which was ascribed to their interactions with the solvent through hydrogen bonds. All the four compounds show evident two-photon absorption ability when evaluated by Z-scan technology. The free ligands could give distinct two-photon excited fluorescence, and the emission of O3TPY responded linearly with Zn(2+) under the excitation of a 780 nm femtosecond laser. Only the complex ZnO3TPY, which possesses a large π conjugation system and suitable election-donating groups, displayed emission maxima at 595 nm when excited by a 680-880 nm laser.