This article describes the covalent grafting of pyromellitimide and 1,4,5,8-naphthalenediimide, which are organic semiconductors with very interesting electro-optical properties, onto the walls of mesoporous molecular sieves. The mesoporous materials MCM-41 and SBA-15 were first treated with 3-aminopropyl-triethoxysilane, generating materials with a surface coverage of primary amino groups. These materials were further reacted with either pyromellitic dianhydride or 1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetracarboxylic dianhydride, generating surface-bound pyromellitimide or 1,4,5,8-naphthalenediimide, respectively. The success of the modification reactions was confirmed by elemental and thermogravimetric analyses, X-ray diffraction patterns and infrared, reflectance and fluorescence spectroscopies. The results indicated that the mesoporous structure of the new materials was preserved after the modification reactions and that the chromophores were included inside the mesoporous channels with stacked aromatic rings. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.