Design and Spectroscopic Study of Samarium Complexes with Tunable Photoluminescent Properties

The synthesis and characterization of four octacoordinated complexes of [Sm(TFPB)3] with different neutral ligands have been successfully performed. This study aimed to evaluate the potential of neutral ligands in enhancing the emission intensity of Sm(III) ion by investigating their light-emitting characteristics. Dominance of hypersensitive transition 4G5/2 → 6H9/2 is observed which suggests the asymmetry in the vicinity of Sm(III) ion in these complexes, reinforced by asymmetry ratio. Stark-splitting in the magnetic dipole 4G5/2→6H5/2 transition was consistent across most complexes, but [Sm(TFPB)3(topo)2] displayed a different pattern due to monodentate auxiliary moiety, which does not provide as much structural rigidity and stability as found in the other complexes. Various analyses including IR, NMR, CV, TGA, UV and colorimetry, supported possible applications of synthesized complexes in devices based on photonics, sensors, magnets and other technological fields.