We synthesized two organic dyes (TPA−CN1−R2 and TPA−CN2−R1) based on the TPA core unit having structure A−D−A, which contain the triphenylamine moiety as an electron donor and both cyanovinylene 4-nitrophenyl and carboxylic (anchoring) units as electron acceptors. Nanocrystalline TiO 2 -based dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) were fabricated using these dyes to investigate the effect of number of anchoring groups on their photovoltaic performance. The DSSCs based on TPA−CN1−R2 and TPA−CN2−R1 showed power conversion efficiency (PCE) of about 2.36% and 1.41%, respectively. The PCE has been significantly improved up to 4.37% and 2.8%, upon addition of 20 mM deoxycholic acid (DCA) to the dye solution for TiO 2 sensitization. Coadsorption of DCA decreased dye coverage but significantly improved the value of the short-circuit photocurrent (J sc ). The breakup of π-stacked aggregates might improve the electron injection yield and thus J sc . Electrochemical impedance spectra and current−voltage characteristics in the dark indicate that the electron lifetime was improved by coadsorption of DCA, accounting for the significant improvement of open-circuit voltage (V oc ).

Six novel anthracene-oxadiazole derivatives, 4a (2-(4-(anthracen-9-yl)phenyl)-5-p-tolyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole), 4b (2-(4-(anthracen-9-yl)phenyl)-5-(4-tert-butylphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole), 4c (2-(4-(anthracen-9-yl)phenyl)-5-(4-methoxyphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole), 8a (2-(4-(anthracen-9-yl)phenyl)-5-m-tolyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole), 8b (2-(3-(anthracen-9-yl)phenyl)-5-(4-tert-butylphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole) and 8c (2-(3-(anthracen-9-yl)phenyl)-5-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole) have been synthesized and characterized for use as emitters in organic light emitting devices (OLEDs). They show good thermal stability (T(d), 297-364 °C) and glass transition temperatures (T(g)) in the range of 82-98 °C, as seen from the thermo gravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetric studies. The solvatochromism phenomenon and electrochemical properties have been studied in detail using UV-Vis absorption, fluorescence spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry. TD-DFT calculations have been carried out to understand the electrochemical and photophysical properties. The spatial structures of 4b and 8c are further confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis. Un-optimized non-doped electroluminescent devices were fabricated using these anthracene derivatives as emitters with the following device configuration: ITO (120 nm)/α-NPD (30 nm)/4a-4c or 8a-8c(35 nm)/BCP (6 nm)/Alq3 (28 nm)/LiF (1 nm)/Al (150 nm). Among all the six compounds, 8a displays the maximum brightness of 1728 cd m(-2) and current efficiency 0.89 cd A(-1). Furthermore, as an electron transporter, 8a exhibited superior performance (current efficiency is 11.7 cd A(-1)) than the device using standard Alq3 (current efficiency is 8.69 cd A(-1)), demonstrating its high potential for employment in OLEDs. These results indicate that the new anthracene-oxadiazole derivatives could play an important role in the development of OLEDs.