Luminescence and Length Control in Nonchelated d8 -Metallosupramolecular Polymers through Metal-Metal Interactions

Supramolecular polymers (SPs) of d8 transition metal complexes have received considerable attention by virtue of their rich photophysical properties arising from metal-metal interactions. However, thus far, the molecular design is restricted to complexes with chelating ligands due to their advantageous preorganization and strong ligand fields. Herein, we demonstrate unique pathway-controllable metal-metal-interactions and remarkable 3 MMLCT luminescence in SPs of a non-chelated PtII complex. Under kinetic control, self-complementary bisamide H-bonding motifs induce a rapid self-assembly into non-emissive H-type aggregates (1A). However, under thermodynamic conditions, a more efficient ligand coplanarization leads to superiorly stabilized SP 1B with extended Pt⋅⋅⋅Pt interactions and remarkably long 3 MMLCT luminescence (τ77 K =0.26 ms). The metal-metal interactions could be subsequently exploited to control the length of the emissive SPs using the seeded-growth approach.

Origin of the Aggregation-Induced Phosphorescence of Platinum(II) Complexes: The Role of Metal-Metal Interactions on Emission Decay in the Crystalline State

Discerning the origins of the phosphorescent aggregation-induced emission (AIE) from Pt(II) complexes is crucial for developing the broader range of photo-functional materials. Over the past few decades, several mechanisms of phosphorescent AIE have been proposed, however, not have been directly elucidated. Herein, we describe phosphorescence and deactivation processes of four class of AIE active Pt(II) complexes in the crystalline state based on experimental and theoretical investigation. These complexes show metal-to-ligand and/or metal-metal-to-ligand charge transfer emission in crystalline state with different heat resistance against thermal emission quenching. The calculated energy profiles including the minimum energy crossing point between S₀ and T₁ states were consistent with the heat resistant properties, which provided the mechanism for AIE expression. Furthermore, we have clarified the role of metal-metal interaction in AIE by comparing two computational models.

Polymorphic Phosphorescence from Separable Aggregates with Unique Photophysical Properties

Platinum complexes aggregate into polymorphs with different intermolecular interactions leading to different photophysical properties. Strong intermolecular interactions stabilize the aggregate to such an extent that the polymorphs can be separated directly by column chromatography. Solid‐state structures as well as quantum‐chemical calculations confirmed the effect of the interactions on the photophysical properties.

Ultralow-Molecular-Weight Stimuli-Responsive and Multifunctional Supramolecular Gels Based on Monomers and Trimers of Hydrazides

The simpler, the better. A series of simple, neutral and ultralow-molecular-weight (MW: 140-200) hydrazide-derived supramolecular gelators have been designed and synthesized in two straightforward steps. For non-conjugated cyclohexane-derived hydrazides, their monomers can self-assemble to form gels through intermolecular hydrogen bonds and dipole-dipole interactions. Significantly, conjugated phthalhydrazide can self-aggregate into planar and circular trimers through intermolecular hydrogen bonds and then self-assemble to form gels through intermolecular π-π stacking interactions. It is interesting that these simple gelators exhibit unusual properties, such as self-healing, multi-response fluorescence, and visual and selective recognition of chiral (R)/(S)-1,1'-binaphthalene-2,2'-diamine and S^2- through much different times of gel re-formation and blue-green color change, respectively. These results underline the importance of supramolecular gels and extend the scope of supramolecular gelators.

Multinuclear PtII Complexes: Why Three is Better Than Two to Enhance Photophysical Properties

The self-assembly of platinum complexes is a well-documented process that leads to interesting changes of the photophysical and electrochemical behavior as well as to a change in reactivity of the complexes. However, it is still not clear how many metal units must interact in order to achieve the desired properties of a large assembly. This work aimed to clarify the role of the number of interacting PtII units leading to an enhancement of the spectroscopic properties and how to address inter- versus intramolecular processes. Therefore, a series of neutral multinuclear PtII complexes were synthesized and characterized, and their photophysical properties at different concentration were studied. Going from the monomer to dimers, the growth of a new emission band and the enhancement of the emission properties were observed. Upon increasing the platinum units up to three, the monomeric blue emission could not be detected anymore and a concentration independent bright-yellow/orange emission, due to the establishment of intramolecular metallophilic interactions, was observed.

Intramolecular rearrangements guided by adaptive coordination-driven reactions toward highly luminescent polynuclear Cu(i) assemblies

Highly luminescent solid-state Cu₆, Au₂Cu₁₀ and Pt₄Cu₁₁ derivatives are obtained in one step reaction thanks to adaptive coordination-driven supramolecular chemistry using pre-assembled flexible Cu(i) precursors.

On-Surface Reactive Planarization of Pt(II) Complexes

A series of Pt(II) complexes with tetradentate luminophores has been designed, synthesized, and deposited on coinage metal surfaces with the aim to produce highly planar self‐assembled monolayers. Low‐temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal a significant initial nonplanarity for all complexes. A subsequent metal‐catalyzed separation of the nonplanar moiety at the bridging unit via the scission of a C−N bond is observed, leaving behind a largely planar core complex. The activation barrier of this bond scission process is found to depend strongly on the chemical nature of both bridging group and coordination plane, and to increase from Cu(111) through Ag(111) to Au(111).

Phosphorescence at Low Temperature by External Heavy-Atom Effect in Zinc(II) Clusters

Luminescent Zn^II clusters [Zn₄ L₄ (μ₃ -OMe)₂ X₂ ] (X=SCN (1), Cl (2), Br (3)) and [Zn₇ L₆ (μ₃ -OMe)₂ (μ₃ -OH)₄ ]Y₂ (Y=I^- (4), ClO₄ ^- (5)), HL=methyl-3-methoxysalicylate, exhibiting blue fluorescence at room temperature (λ_max =416≈429 nm, Φ_em =0.09-0.36) have been synthesised and investigated in detail. In one case the external heavy-atom effect (EHE) arising the presence of iodide counter anions yielded phosphorescence with a long emission lifetime (λ_max =520 nm, τ=95.3 ms) at 77 K. Single-crystal X-ray structural analysis and time-dependent density-functional theory (TD-DFT) calculations revealed that their emission origin was attributed to the fluorescence from the singlet ligand-centred (¹ LC) excited state, and the phosphorescence observed in 4 was caused by the EHE of counter anions having strong CH-I interactions.

Unveiling the Role of Macrodipolar Interactions in the Properties of Self-Assembled Supramolecular Materials

Self-assembling of supramolecules composed of benzene and cyclohexane tricarboxamide derivatives can form highly organized 1 D fibers exhibiting macrodipoles. The way fibers pack in the condensed phase governs the final properties of the supramolecular material, in which macrodipoles can be oriented parallel or antiparallel to each other, and their magnitude can be tuned by additional intra-columnar dipole stabilization. X-ray structural elucidation of these materials remains a real challenge due to the difficulty in growing single crystals. This problem can be tackled by using atomistic molecular dynamics to simulate supramolecular materials composed of cyclohexanetricarboxamide derivatives assuming different magnitudes and orientations of macrodipoles in the condensed phase, as we show here. The results provide insight on the isotropization mechanism of the supramolecules and also reveal that the relative orientation between macrodipoles can indeed influence their stability. This work nicely complements X-ray structural characterizations of supramolecular materials, and helps understand structure-property relationships of a range of similar noncovalent materials.

Self-Assembly of Conjugated Metallopolymers with Tunable Length and Controlled Regiochemistry

Self-assembled materials can be designed to express useful optoelectronic properties; however, achieving structural control is a necessary precondition for the optimization of desired properties. Here we report a simple, metal-templated polymerization process that generates helical metallopolymer strands over 75 repeat units long (28 kDa) from a single bifunctional monomer and Cu^I . The resulting polymer consists of a double helix of two identical conjugated organic strands enclosing a central column of metal ions. The length of this metallopolymer can be controlled by adding monofunctional subcomponents to end-cap the conjugated ligands. The use of ditopic and bulky monotopic subcomponents, respectively, allows a head-to-head or head-to-tail double helix to be generated. Spectroscopic measurements of different polymer lengths demonstrate how control over polymer length leads to control over the electronic and luminescent properties of the resulting material, thereby enabling tunable white-light emission.

Influence of Metal, Ligand and Solvent on Supramolecular Polymerizations with Transition-Metal Compounds: A Theoretical Study

The nature of intermolecular interactions governing supramolecular polymerizations is very important for controlling their cooperativity. In order to address this problem, supramolecular columns made of Pt^II and Pd^II complexes of oligo(phenylene ethynylene)-based pyridine (OPE) and tetrazolylpyridine ligands (TEP) were investigated through the dispersion-corrected PM6 method. Aromatic, CH-π, M-Cl and metallophilic interactions helped stabilize the supramolecules studied, and their geometries and associated cooperativities were in excellent agreement with experimental data. The OPE ligand and/or the presence of Pt^II led to stronger metallophilic interactions and also to cooperative supramolecular polymerizations, which clearly suggests that metallophilic interactions are a key factor for controlling cooperativity. The results indicate that sequential monomer addition is in general less spontaneous than the combination of two larger preformed stacks. The present theoretical investigations contribute to the further understanding of the relation between the thermodynamics of supramolecular polymerizations and the nature of different synthons.

Photoinduced Charge Separation in a Donor-Spacer-Acceptor Dyad with N-Annulated Perylene Donor and Methylviologen Acceptor

The first donor-acceptor species in which a strongly emissive N-annulated perylene dye is connected to a methylviologen electron acceptor unit via its macrocyclic nitrogen atom, is prepared by a stepwise, modular procedure. The absorption spectra, redox behavior, spectroelectrochemistry and photophysical properties of this dyad and of its model species are investigated, also by pump-probe fs transient absorption spectroscopy. Photoinduced oxidative electron transfer from the excited state of the dyad, centered on the N-annulated perylene subunit, to the appended methyviologen electron acceptor takes place in a few ps. The charge-separated species recombines in 19 ps. Our results indicate that N-annulated perylene can be connected to functional units by taking advantage of the macrocyclic nitrogen, an option never used until now, without losing their properties, so opening the way to new designing approaches.

Tridentate Complexes of Palladium(II) and Platinum(II) Bearing bis-Aryloxide Triazole Ligands: A Joint Experimental and Theoretical Investigation

A novel class of palladium(II) and platinum(II) complexes bearing tridentate bis-aryloxide triazole ligands was prepared by using straightforward and high-yielding synthetic routes. The complexes were fully characterized and the molecular structures of four derivatives were unambigously determined by single-crystal X-ray diffractometric analyses. For the most promising luminescent Pt(II) derivatives, further experimental investigations were carried out to characterize their photophysical features and to ascertain the nature of the emitting excited state by means of electronic absorption, steady-state, and time-resolved emission techniques in different conditions. In degassed fluid solution the complexes displayed broad and featureless photoluminescence with λ(em) =522-585 nm, excited-state lifetime up to few microseconds and quantum yield (PLQY) up to 17%, depending on the nature of both ancillary ligand and substituent on the tridentate ligand. Computational investigation using density functional theory and time-dependent DFT were performed to gain insight into the electronic processes responsible for optical transitions and structure-photoluminescence relationship. Jointly, experimental and theoretical characterization indicated that the radiative transition arises from an excited state with admixed triplet-manifold metal-to-ligand charge transfer and ligand-centered ((3)MLCT/(3)LC) character. We elucidated the modulation of the photophysical properties upon variation of substituents for this new family of complexes.

Temperature- and voltage-induced ligand rearrangement of a dynamic electroluminescent metallopolymer

A dynamic-covalent metal-containing polymer was synthesized by the condensation of linear diamine and dialdehyde subcomponents around copper(I) templates in the presence of bidentate phosphine ligands. In solution, the red polymers undergo a sol-gel transition upon heating to form a yellow gel, a process that can be either reversible or irreversible depending on the solvent used. When fabricated into a light-emitting electrochemical cell (LEC), the polymer emits infrared light at low voltage. As the voltage is increased, a blue shift in the emission wavelength is observed until yellow light is emitted, a process which is gradually reversed over time upon lowering the voltage. The mechanism underlying these apparently disparate responses is deduced to be due to loss of the copper phosphine complex from the polymer.

Solid-state phosphorescence of trans-bis(salicylaldiminato)platinum(II) complexes bearing long alkyl chains: morphology control towards intense emission

Morphology control for intense solid-state phosphorescence of non-emissive, but potentially emissive crystals of platinum complexes and the mechanistic rationale are described. A series of trans-bis(salicylaldiminato)platinum(II) complexes bearing linear alkyl chains (1a: n=5; 1b: n=8; 1c: n=12; 1d: n=14; 1e: n=16; 1f: n=18) was synthesized and the solid-state emission properties were examined by using crystals/aggregates prepared under various precipitation conditions. Crystals of 1e, prepared using "kinetic" conditions including rapid cooling, high concentrations, and poor solvents, emit intensive yellow phosphorescence (λ(max)=545 nm) under UV irradiation at 298 K with an absolute quantum efficiency of 0.36, whereas all the crystals of 1a-1f prepared using "thermodynamic" conditions including slow cooling, low concentrations, and good solvents were either non- or less emissive with Φ(298K) values of 0.12 (1a), 0.11 (1b), 0.10 (1c), 0.07 (1d), 0.02 (1e), and 0.02 (1f) under the same measurement conditions. The amorphous solid 1e, prepared by rapid cooling and freeze-drying, was also non-emissive (Φ(298K)=0.02, 0.02). Temperature-dependent emission spectra showed that the kinetic crystals of 1e exhibit high heat-resistance towards emission decay with increasing temperature, whereas the amorphous solid 1e is entirely heat-quenchable. This is a rare example of the change from a non-emissive crystal into a highly emissive crystal by morphology control through crystal engineering. Emission spectra and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of the emissive, kinetic crystals of 1e are clearly distinct from those of the less emissive, thermodynamic crystals of 1a-1f. Single-crystal XRD unequivocally establishes that the thermodynamic crystals of 1d have a multilayered lamellar structure supported by highly regulated, consecutive π-stacking interactions between imine moieties, whereas the kinetic crystals of 1e have a face-to-edge lamellar structure with less stacking. These results lead to the conclusion that 1) morphology control of long-chained complexes exclusively generates a metastable herringbone-based lamellar packing motif that exhibits intense emission and high heat-resistance, while 2) a thermodynamically stable, highly regulated, consecutive stacking motif is unfavorable for solid-state emission.