Electrogenerated chemiluminescence of BODIPY, Ru(bpy)3(2+), and 9,10-diphenylanthracene using interdigitated array electrodes.

Interdigitated array electrodes (IDAs) were used to produce steady-state electrogenerated chemiluminescence (ECL) by annihilation of oxidized and reduced forms of a substituted boron dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dye, 9,10-diphenylanthracene (DPA), and ruthenium(II) tris(bypiridine) (Ru(bpy)3(2+)). Digital simulations were in good agreement with the experimentally obtained currents and light outputs. Coreactant experiments, using tri-n-propylamine and benzoyl peroxide as a sacrificial homogeneous reductant or oxidant, show currents corresponding to electrode reactions of the dyes and not the oxidation or reduction of the coreactants. The results show that interdigitated arrays can produce stable ECL where the light intensity is magnified due to the larger currents as a consequence of feedback between generator and collector electrodes in the IDA. The light output for ECL is around 100 times higher than that obtained with regular planar electrodes with similar area.