Polymer fluorophores

Ghoroghchian PP, FraQ PR, Li G, Zupancich JA, Bates FS, Hammer DA, Therien AMJ (2007) Controlling bulk optical properties of emissive polymersomes through intramembra-nous polymer-fluorophore interactions. Chem Mater 19 1309-1318... 

Bhawalkar J D, Swiatkiewicz J, Pan S J, Samarabandu J K, Liou W S, He G S, Berezney R, Cheng P C and Prasad P N 1996 Three-dimensional laser scanning two-photon fluorescence confocal microscopy of polymer materials using a new, efficient upconverting fluorophore Scanning 18 562-6... 

Figure 3. Porosity measurements on a microscopic scale for a small (2 cm X 2 cm X 30 urn) thin section of sandstone impregnated with fluorophor-doped polymer. Average porosity - 16.3% range of porosities - 1.8-42%.

The approach to standardization used by Haaijman (53) and others (66,67), in which the fluorophor is incorporated within or bound to the surface of a plastic sphere, is more versatile than the use of inorganic ion>doped spheres, since the standard can be tailored exactly to the specifications required by the analyte species. However, this approach increases the uncertainty of the measurement because the photobleaching characteristics of both the standard and the sample must be considered. The ideal approach is to employ both types of standards. The glass microspheres can be used to calibrate instruments and set instrument operating parameters on a day-to-day basis, and the fluorophor-doped polymer materials can be used to determine the concentration-instrument response function. 

Phenolic copolymers containing fluorophores (fluoroscein and calcein) were synthesized by SBP catalysis and used as array-based metal-ion sensor. Selectivity and sensitivity for metal ions could be controlled by changing the polymer components. Combinatorial approach was made for efficient screening of specific sensing of the metals. 

For determination of low hydrogen peroxide concentrations, a chemiluminescent reagent system was developed consisting of oxalyldiimidazole and an immobilized fluorophore (3-aminofluoranthene) on an acrylate polymer.[47]... 

In (8), the solvent-independent constants kr, kQnr, and Ax can be combined into a common dye-dependent constant C, which leads directly to (5). The radiative decay rate xr can be determined when rotational reorientation is almost completely inhibited, that is, by embedding the molecular rotor molecules in a glass-like polymer and performing time-resolved spectroscopy measurements at 77 K. In one study [33], the radiative decay rate was found to be kr = 2.78 x 108 s-1, which leads to the natural lifetime t0 = 3.6 ns. Two related studies where similar fluorophores were examined yielded values of t0 = 3.3 ns [25] and t0 = 3.6 ns [29]. It is likely that values between 3 and 4 ns for t0 are typical for molecular rotors. 

The first intravascular sensor for simultaneous and continuous monitoring of the pH, pC>2, and pCC>2 was developed by CDI-3M Health Care (Tustin CA)14 based on a system designed and tested by Gehrich et al.15. Three optical fibres (core diameter = 125 pm) are encapsulated in a polymer enclosure, along with a thermocouple embedded for temperature monitoring (Figure 3). pH measurement is carried out by means of a fluorophore, hydroxypyrene trisulfonic acid (HTPS), covalently bonded to a matrix of cellulose, attached to the fibre tip. Both the acidic ( eXc=410 nm) and alkaline ( exc=460 nm) excitation bands of the fluorophore are used, since their emission bands are centred on the same wavelength (/-cm 520 nm). The ratio of the fluorescence intensity for the two excitations is measured, to render the sensor relatively insensitive to fluctuations of optical intensity. 

Helical polysilanes whose optical activity is induced by chiral side chains are particularly suitable chiroptical polymers for elucidating the inherent nature of the polymer helix since they embody a fluorophoric and chromophoric main chain, exhibiting intense UV, CD, and FL bands due to the Sia-Sia ... 

The fourth type of mediator-based cation optical sensing is using potential sensitive dye and a cation selective ionophore doped in polymer membrane. Strong fluorophores, e.g. Rhodamine-B C-18 ester exhibits differences in fluorescence intensity because of the concentration redistribution in membranes. PVC membranes doped with a potassium ionophore, can selectively extract potassium into the membrane, and therefore produce a potential at the membrane/solu-tion interface. This potential will cause the fluorescent dye to redistribute within the membrane and therefore changes its fluorescence intensity. Here, the ionophore and the fluorescence have no interaction, therefore it can be applied to develop other cation sensors with a selective neutral ionophore. 

Quantum clusters are highly photostable when compared with organic fluorophores. A study was conducted to check the photostability of clusters in comparison to organic fluorophores and semiconductor quantum dots [12]. Photostability of a gold cluster capped with dihydrolipoic acid (AuNC DHLA) was compared with polymer coated CdSe/ZnS semiconductor quantum dots and two different organic fluorophores namely fluorescein and rhodamine 6G (Fig. 5). For the study, 20 pi of fluorescent AuNC DHLA was dissolved in sodium borate buffer of pH 9. The sample was loaded into a quartz cuvette and was exposed to blue-light (480 nm)... 

Fig. 5 Photostability of fluorescent Au nanoclusters (AuNC DHLA) compared with semiconductor quantum dots (polymer-coated QD 520 from Invitrogen) and organic fluorophores (fluorescein, rhodamine 6G) [12]...

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