A chemosensor-based chiral coassembly with switchable circularly polarized luminescence.

Area of Science:

• Supramolecular Chemistry
• Materials Science
• Chemical Sensing

Background:

• Fluorescent chemosensors offer rapid analyte detection via luminescence changes.
• Controlling luminescence and chiroptical properties in self-assembled chiral systems remains a challenge.
• Existing methods lack dynamic control over these features in complex assemblies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a coassembled multiple-component system for controlling luminescence and chiroptical activities.
• To investigate the response of self-assembled chiral systems to sulfur dioxide (SO2) derivatives.
• To achieve switchable luminescence and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) through external stimuli.

Main Methods:

• Coassembly of cholesteryl-naphthalimide (donor) and coumarin derivatives (acceptor) into vesicles and nanohelices via solvent strategy.
• Utilizing energy transfer between donor and acceptor for tunable CPL.
• Inducing changes in luminescence and CPL through nucleophilic addition reactions with SO2 derivatives.

Main Results:

• The coassembled system exhibits dynamic aggregation and switchable luminescence.
• Energy transfer between components allows for tunable CPL from green to red based on molar fraction.
• Reaction with SO2 derivatives hinders energy transfer, leading to hypochromic shifts and emergent pristine luminescence.

Conclusions:

• A novel protocol for controlling luminescence and chiroptical features of supramolecular chiral self-assemblies is presented.
• The system demonstrates responsive behavior to SO2 derivatives, offering dynamic control.
• This work advances the design of functional chiral materials with tunable optical properties.