Crystallization-induced emission enhancement in a phosphorus-containing heterocyclic luminogen

Whereas aggregation often quenches luminescence, the emission of a heterocyclic luminogen, 10-[2,5-bis(4-pentyloxyphenylcarbonyloxy)phenyl]-9,10-dihydro-9-oxa-10-phosphaphenanthrene-10-oxide (3), is greatly enhanced by aggregate formation. Crystallization further boosts the emission of 3, turning it from a weak emitter in the solution state to a strong emitter in the crystalline state. The emission of 3 is changed in response to the exposure to vapors of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The morphology of the thin film of 3 is reversibly and repeatedly modulated between amorphous and crystalline phases by simple fuming-heating and heating-cooling cycles, leading to an emission switching between bright and dark states. The novel attributes of the crystallization-induced emission enhancement, the VOC-responsive emission change, and the morphology-tunable emission switching of 3 could enable it to find applications in an array of technological areas, including chemosensing, optical display, and rewritable information storage.