Piezochromic Luminescence Based on the Molecular Aggregation of 9,10-Bis((E)-2-(pyrid-2-yl)vinyl)anthracene

Conformational Planarization versus Singlet Fission: Distinct Excited-State Dynamics of Cyclooctatetraene-Fused Acene Dimers

A set of flapping acene dimers fused with an 8π cyclooctatetraene (COT) ring showed distinct excited-state dynamics in solution. While the anthracene dimer showed a fast V-shaped-to-planar conformational change within 10 ps in the lowest excited singlet state, reminding us of extended Baird aromaticity, the tetracene dimer and the pentacene dimer underwent intramolecular singlet fission (SF) in different manners: A fast and reversible SF with a characteristic delayed fluorescence (FL), and a fast and quantitative SF, respectively. Conformational flexibility of the fused COT linkage plays an important role in these ultrafast dynamics, demonstrating the utility of the flapping molecular series as a versatile platform for designing photofunctional systems.

Light-Harvesting Organic Nanocrystals Capable of Photon Upconversion

Harvesting and converting low energy photons into higher ones through upconversion have great potential in solar energy conversion. A light-harvesting nanocrystal assembled from 9,10-distyrylanthracene and palladium(II) meso-tetraphenyltetrabenzoporphyrin as the acceptor and the sensitizer, respectively effects red-to-green upconversion under incoherent excitation of low power density. An upconversion quantum yield of 0.29±0.02 % is obtained upon excitation with 640 nm laser of 120 mW cm^-2 . The well-organized packing of acceptor molecules with aggregation-induced emission in the nanocrystals dramatically reduces the nonradiative decay of the excited acceptor, benefits the triplet-triplet annihilation (TTA) upconversion and guides the consequent upconverted emission. This work provides a straightforward strategy to develop light-harvesting nanocrystals based on TTA upconversion, which is attractive for energy conversion and photonic applications.

Piezochromic Carbon Dots with Two-photon Fluorescence

Piezochromic materials, which show color changes resulting from mechanical grinding or external pressure, can be used as mechanosensors, indicators of mechano-history, security papers, optoelectronic devices, and data storage systems. A class of piezochromic materials with unprecedented two-photon absorptive and yellow emissive carbon dots (CDs) was developed for the first time. Applied pressure from 0-22.84 GPa caused a noticeable color change in the luminescence of yellow emissive CDs, shifting from yellow (557 nm) to blue-green (491 nm). Moreover, first-principles calculations support transformation of the sp² domains into sp³ -hybridized domains under high pressure. The structured CDs generated were captured by quenching the high-pressure phase to ambient conditions, thus greatly increasing the choice of materials available for a variety of applications.

Crystal structures and intense luminescence of tris(3-(2′-pyridyl)-pyrazolyl)borate Tb3+ and Eu3+ complexes with carboxylate co-ligands

The carboxylate coligands affect the bright luminescence of a series of Eu³⁺ and Tb³⁺ complexes.

Continuously tunable emission color based on the molecular aggregation of (2Z,2′Z)-2,2′-(1,4-phenylenae)bis(3-(4-(dodecyloxy)phenyl)acrylonitrile)

A luminescent liquid crystal self-assembles to a layer structure or a helical structure with different pitch length depending on the stacking rate; a photoluminescence spectrum blue-shift from 600 nm to 506 nm.

Multistimuli-Responsive Luminescence Switching of Pyrazine Derivative Based Donor-Acceptor-Donor Luminophores

Three symmetrical donor-acceptor-donor (D-A-D) luminophores (C1, C2, and C3) with pyrazine derivatives as electron-withdrawing groups have been developed for multistimuli-responsive luminescence switching. For comparison, reference compounds R1 and R2 without the pyrazine moiety have also been synthesized. Intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) interactions can be found for all D-A-D luminophores owing to the electron-withdrawing properties of the two imine nitrogen atoms in the pyrazine ring and the electron-donating properties of the other two amine nitrogen atoms in the two triphenylamine units. Moreover, luminophores C1, C2, and C3 exhibit "on-off-on" luminescence switching properties in mixtures of water/tetrahydrofuran with increasing water content, which is different from the "on-off" switching for typical aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) materials and "off-on" switching for traditional aggregation-induced emission (AIE) materials. Additionally, upon grinding the pristine samples, luminophores C1, C2, and C3 display bathochromically shifted photoluminescence maxima that can be recovered by either solvent fuming or thermal annealing treatments. The piezofluorochromic (PFC) properties are more pronounced than those for reference compounds R1 and R2, which indicates that D-A molecules have the ability to amplify the PFC effect by tuning the ICT interactions upon tiny structural changes under pressure. Furthermore, the target luminophores demonstrate acid-responsive photoluminescence spectra that can be recovered in either basic or ambient environments. These results suggest that D-A complexes are potential candidates for multistimuli-responsive luminescence switching because their ICT profiles can be facilely tuned with tiny external stimuli.

Multistimuli-Responsive Luminescence of Naphthalazine Based on Aggregation-Induced Emission

Stimuli-responsive luminescent materials, which are dependent on changes in physical molecular packing modes, have attracted more and more interest over the past ten years. In this study, 2,2-dihydroxy-1,1-naphthalazine was synthesized and shown to exhibit different fluorescence emission in solution and solid states with characteristic aggregation-induced emission (AIE) properties. A remarkable change in the fluorescence of 2,2-dihydroxy-1,1-naphthalazine occurred upon mechanical grinding, heating, or exposure to solvents. According to the characterization by solid-state fluorescence spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography, differential scanning calorimetry, and X-ray powder diffraction, the fluorescence change could be attributed to transitions between two structurally different polymorphs. These significant properties could also give 2,2-dihydroxy-1,1-naphthalazine more potential applications as a multifunctional material.

Linearly tunable emission colors obtained from a fluorescent-phosphorescent dual-emission compound by mechanical stimuli

Organic mechanoluminochromic materials are mechano/piezo-responsive and promising for applications in sensors, displays, and data storage devices. However, their switching range of emission is seriously impeded by only one kind of emission (either a fluorescent or phosphorescent peak) in the spectrum of single organic compounds. This study presents a design strategy for pure organic compounds with excellent room-temperature fluorescent-phosphorescent dual-emission (rFPDE) properties, which combines the effective factors of dipenylsulfone group, crystalline state, and heavy atom effect. Following the principle of color mixing, myriad emission colors with a wide range from orange to purple and across white zone in a straight line in the chromaticity diagram of the Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage (CIE) can be obtained by simply mechanical grinding the compound. The unique properties could be concentrated on a pure organic compound through this design strategy, which provides a new efficient channel for the discovery of efficient mechano-responsive organic materials.

Mechanochromic luminescence of copper iodide clusters

Luminescent mechanochromic materials are particularly appealing for the development of stimuli-responsive materials. Establishing the mechanism responsible for the mechanochromism is always an issue owing to the difficulty in characterizing the ground phase. Herein, the study of real crystalline polymorphs of a mechanochromic and thermochromic luminescent copper iodide cluster permits us to clearly establish the mechanism involved. The local disruption of the crystal packing induces changes in the cluster geometry and in particular the modification of the cuprophilic interactions, which consequently modify the emissive states. This study constitutes a step further toward the understanding of the mechanism involved in the mechanochromic luminescent properties of multimetallic coordination complexes.

o-Carborane-based anthracene: a variety of emission behaviors

An o-carborane-based anthracene was synthesized, and single crystals, with incorporated solvent molecules, were obtained from the CHCl3 , CH2 Cl2 , and C6 H6 solutions. The anthracene ring in the crystal is highly distorted by the formation of a π-stacked dimer between the anthracene units. The crystals exhibited a variety of emission behaviors such as aggregation-induced emission (AIE), crystallization-induced emission (CIE), aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ), and multichromism.

Mechanosensitive membrane probes

This article assembles pertinent insights behind the concept of planarizable push-pull probes. As a response to the planarization of their polarized ground state, a red shift of their excitation maximum is expected to report on either the disorder, the tension, or the potential of biomembranes. The combination of chromophore planarization and polarization contributes to various, usually more complex processes in nature. Examples include the color change of crabs or lobsters during cooking or the chemistry of vision, particularly color vision. The summary of lessons from nature is followed by an overview of mechanosensitive organic materials. Although often twisted and sometimes also polarized, their change of color under pressure usually originates from changes in their crystal packing. Intriguing exceptions include the planarization of several elegantly twisted phenylethynyl oligomers and polymers. Also mechanosensitive probes in plastics usually respond to stretching by disassembly. True ground-state planarization in response to molecular recognition is best exemplified with the binding of thoughtfully twisted cationic polythiophenes to single- and double-stranded oligonucleotides. Molecular rotors, en vogue as viscosity sensors in cells, operate by deplanarization of the first excited state. Pertinent recent examples are described, focusing on λ-ratiometry and intracellular targeting. Complementary to planarization of the ground state with twisted push-pull probes, molecular rotors report on environmental changes with quenching or shifts in emission rather than absorption. The labeling of mechanosensitive channels is discussed as a bioengineering approach to bypass the challenge to create molecular mechanosensitivity and use biological systems instead to sense membrane tension. With planarizable push-pull probes, this challenge is met not with twistome screening, but with "fluorescent flippers," a new concept to insert large and bright monomers into oligomeric probes to really feel the environment and also shine when twisted out of conjugation.

Organic polymorphs: one-compound-based crystals with molecular-conformation- and packing-dependent luminescent properties

The present study of structure-property relationships and disclosure of fascinating amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) behavior of an organic molecule not only exhibits the individual effect of molecular conformation and arrangement on the emission properties of the crystal separately, but also indicates that some concealed elegant properties of organic solids can be achieved through manipulating the polymorphic form.

Mechanochromic behavior of aryl-substituted buta-1,3-diene derivatives with aggregation enhanced emission

Three tetra-aryl substituted 1,3-butadiene derivatives with aggregation enhanced emission (AEE) and mechanochromic fluorescence behavior have been rationally designed and synthesized. The results suggest an effective design strategy for developing diverse materials with aggregation induced emission (AIE) and significant mechanochromic performance by employing D-π-A structures with large dipole moments.

Fluorescence color change of aggregation-induced emission of 4-[bis(4-methylphenyl)amino]benzaldehyde

Together we shine: Fluorescence color change of 4-[bis(4-methylphenyl)amino]benzaldehyde (BMABA) could be induced by vigorous stirring and heating of the suspension. This is attributed to a morphological change of the particles from an amorphous state to a crystalline state; therefore, BMABA is identified as a new aggregation-induced emission material.