Dipolar fluorescent compounds containing electron-accepting pyrazine-2,3-dicarbonitrile and electron-donating arylamine moiety have been designed and synthesized. The optical and electrochemical properties of these compounds can be adjusted by changing pi-bridge length and the donor (D) strength. Organic light-emitting devices based on these compounds are fabricated. Saturated red emission of (0.67, 0.33) and the external quantum efficiency as high as 1.41% have been demonstrated for one of these compounds. (c) 2005 Published by Elsevier B.V.