Highly fluorescent crystalline and liquid crystalline columnar phases of pyrene-based structures

The synthesis of a new tetrakis(trisalkoxy-phenylethynyl)pyrene discotic mesogen that forms hexagonal and rectangular columnar mesophases is reported. In addition to a high fluorescence quantum yield in solution, the molecule exhibits a quantum yield in the crystalline phase as high as 62 (plusmn) 6% and this value is one of the highest fluorescence quantum yields reported so far for discotics.