Enabling Long-Lived Polymeric Room Temperature Phosphorescence Material in Abominable Solvent.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Photophysics

Background:

• Polymeric room temperature phosphorescence (RTP) materials offer convenient preparation and efficient performance.
• Existing materials often suffer from poor stability in air and humidity due to decomposable non-covalent interactions.
• Developing stable, long-lived RTP materials for harsh environments remains a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and synthesize a novel polymer, mBPipQ, for long-lived polymeric RTP applications.
• To enhance the stability and phosphorescence performance of RTP materials by dispersing mBPipQ in an epoxy resin matrix.
• To investigate the material's performance under harsh conditions (acid/alkali exposure) and demonstrate its potential for information encryption.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of the mBPipQ polymer containing aromatic and piperidine rings.
• Uniform dispersion of mBPipQ into an epoxy resin matrix.
• Characterization of RTP properties, including lifetime and emission efficiency.
• Assessment of material stability in strong acid and alkali solutions.
• Demonstration of multilevel information encryption using the developed RTP material.

Main Results:

• The synthesized mBPipQ polymer, when dispersed in epoxy resin, forms a long-lived polymeric RTP material with efficient afterglow.
• The rigid backbone of mBPip and the epoxy matrix significantly enhance RTP performance by stabilizing triplet excitons.
• The RTP material exhibited a lifetime 2 times higher than small molecule chromophores in the same matrix.
• The material maintained stable and efficient phosphorescence emission even after 10 days of soaking in strong acid or alkali solutions.
• Multilevel information encryption was successfully demonstrated, showcasing the material's practical utility.

Conclusions:

• The developed mBPipQ/epoxy resin composite exhibits excellent long-lived RTP properties and remarkable stability in harsh chemical environments.
• The rigid matrix effectively protects triplet excitons from external quenchers, leading to enhanced phosphorescence.
• This work expands the application scope of polymeric RTP materials, particularly in challenging conditions, and offers a novel approach for efficient RTP emission.