Application in Anticounterfeiting for Multistimuli Smart Luminescent Materials Based on MOF-on-MOF

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Chemistry
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Smart responsive materials offer platforms for information encoding and multilevel security.
• Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are versatile materials for developing advanced functionalities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize a novel MOF-on-MOF composite material with multiresponsive optical outputs.
• To demonstrate its application in dynamic anticounterfeiting with multilevel security.

Main Methods:

• Synthesized a MOF-on-MOF structure by growing ZIF-8 on HPU-14.
• Incorporated anthracene (ANT) and lanthanide ions (Ln3+) as emitter centers.
• Investigated optical responses to UV light (365 nm and 254 nm) and acid/alkali gas stimuli.

Main Results:

• The composite material exhibited reversible photoswitching behavior due to ANT in ZIF-8.
• Acid/alkali gas treatment induced reversible optical switching attributed to Ln3+ in HPU-14.
• Demonstrated a strict stimuli sequence for deciphering information, ensuring high security.

Conclusions:

• The MOF-on-MOF material enables "resetting and reusing" dynamic anticounterfeiting.
• This technology provides a secure method for protecting information against sophisticated counterfeiters.
• Opens new avenues for designing advanced multilevel anticounterfeiting materials.