Improved Charge-Transfer Fluorescent Dyes

Improved charge- transfer fluorescent dyes have been developed for use as molecular probes. These dyes are based on benzofuran nuclei with attached phenyl groups substituted with, variously, electron donors, electron acceptors, or combi- nations of donors and acceptors. Optionally, these dyes could be incorporated as parts of polymer backbones or as pendant groups or attached to certain surfaces via self-assembly-based methods.