Core, Shell, and Surface-Optimized Dendrimers for Blue Light-Emitting Diodes

We present a novel core−shell−surface multifunctional structure for dendrimers using a blue fluorescent pyrene core with triphenylene dendrons and triphenylamine surface groups. We find efficient excitation energy transfer from the triphenylene shell to the pyrene core, substantially enhancing the quantum yield in solution and the solid state (4-fold) compared to dendrimers without a core emitter, while TPA groups facilitate the hole capturing and injection ability in the device applications. With a luminance of up to 1400 cd/m², a saturated blue emission CIE_xy = (0.15, 0.17) and high operational stability, these dendrimers belong to the best reported fluorescence-based blue-emitting organic molecules.