Rotaxane-Based Mechanophores Enable Polymers with Mechanically Switchable White Photoluminescence

Three mechanoresponsive polyurethane elastomers whose blue, green, and orange photoluminescence can be reversibly turned on by mechanical force were prepared and combined to create a blend that exhibits deformation-induced white photoluminescence. The three polyurethanes contain rotaxane-based supramolecular mechanoluminophores based on π-extended pyrene, anthracene, or 4-(dicyanomethylene)-2-methyl-6-(4-dimethylaminostyryl)-4H-pyran (DCM) luminophores, respectively, and 1,4,5,8-naphthalenetetracarboxylic diimide as an electronically matched quencher. Each polymer shows instantly reversible, strain-dependent switching of its photoluminescence intensity when stretched and relaxed, as deformation leads to a spatial separation of the luminophore and quencher. The present study shows that the photoluminescence color can easily be tailored by variation of the luminophore and also by combining several mechanophores in one material and demonstrates that adaptability is a key advantage of supramolecular approaches to create mechanoresponsive polymers.