Photophysical properties and applications of coordination complexes incorporating pyrene

Pyrene is a well-known aromatic hydrocarbon with unique photophysical properties that have been extensively studied. Coordination of pyrene and pyrene-containing ligands to metal centres gives rise to diverse photophysical behaviour that cannot be observed in pyrene alone. This review summarizes the photophysics of pyrene-containing coordination complexes, and examples of applications where these complexes are useful are discussed.