Structural and optical study on a single crystal of a novel fluorinated acridine

Within a new class of anthracene-like molecules, namely tetrafluoro-acridines, a systematic study of the structural and optical properties of single crystals of a prototypical member, 1,2,3,4-tetrafluoro-7(N,N)dimethyl-amino-acridine, is illustrated. Single crystals were grown by physical vapour transport using an inert gas flow as carrier, starting from a microcrystalline powder of the pure material. The crystal structure, determined by X ray diffraction, points out that the crystals are monoclinic with molecules stacked along the c axis. The results of atomic force microscopy on the ac face of a single crystal, at both low and molecular resolution, are consistent with the X-ray diffraction data. Preliminary results of the optical properties of the single crystal, in the unique configuration accessible due to the peculiar habit of the samples, are discussed.