A library of luminescent cyclometalated gold(III) complexes containing various bis-cyclometalating R-C^N^C ligands derived from 2,6-diphenylpyridine and ancillary alkynyl ligands, [Au(R-C^N^C)(C≡CR’)], has been synthesized. Some of the complexes have been structurally determined by X-ray crystallography. These complexes were found to exhibit intense emission in dichloromethane solution at 298 K, originating from metal-perturbed triplet intraligand (IL) excited states of the R-C^N^C ligand, with substantial charge transfer character from the aryl moiety to the pyridyl ring. In the presence of electron-rich alkynyl ligands, the emission origin could be switched to an alkynyl-to-cyclometalating ligand ligand-to-ligand charge transfer (LLCT) excited state. This class of complexes was also demonstrated to show rich electroluminescence properties as emitters in organic light-emitting devices. In addition, the supramolecular assembly of this class of complexes has also been revealed in gelation studies. N-Heterocyclic carbenes have been incorporated into the gold(III) metal center to prepare a series of luminescent mononuclear and dinuclear gold(III) complexes, [{Au(C^N^C)}n(NHC)](PF6)n and [{Au(tBuC^N^CtBu)}n(NHC)]- (PF6)n (n = 1, 2). The X-ray crystal structures of most of the complexes have been determined. The emissions of these complexes were assigned to originate from the metal-perturbed intraligand excited state of the bis-cyclometalating ligand. One of the C2-bridged dinuclear complexes was found to exhibit two distinct reduction couples, tentatively correlated to the presence of significant intramolecular π-π interaction in the complex. Two novel series of luminescent mononuclear alkynylgold(III) complexes, [Au(C^N)(C≡CR)2] (HC^N = 2-phenylpyridine (Hppy) and derivatives) and [Au(C^N^N)(C≡CR)]PF6 (HC^N^N = 6-phenyl-2,2’-bipyridine and derivatives), have been synthesized. Some of the X-ray crystal structures have been determined. The former class of complexes with bidentate C^N ligands has been observed to show tunable emission spanning across the visible spectrum from 462 to 697 nm. With the exception of [Au(ppy)(C≡C-C6H4-NH2-p)2] which showed a low-energy band originated from a 3LLCT [π(C≡C-C6H4-NH2)→π*(C^N)] excited state, all complexes exhibited vibronic-structured emission bands originated from the intraligand transition of the cyclometalating C^N ligand in dichloromethane solution at 298 K. On the other hand, most of the complexes with the tridentate C^N^N-type ligand have been observed to exhibit vibronic-structured emission bands attributed to the intraligand transition of the C^N^N ligand in low-temperature butyronitrile glass. / published_or_final_version / Chemistry / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

published_or_final_version / Chemistry / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

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Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- McMaster University, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 260-271). Also available via World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Nevada, Reno, 2008. / "December, 2008." Includes bibliographical references. Online version available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Delaware, 2008. / Principal faculty advisor: Douglass F. Taber, Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of California, Riverside, 2009. / Includes abstract. Available via ProQuest Digital Dissertations. Title from first page of PDF file (viewed March 10, 2010). Includes bibliographical references. Also issued in print.