Design Strategy for Enabling Multifunctional Properties of Anthracene-based Emitters

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Organic Chemistry
• Photophysics

Background:

• Designing multifunctional organic materials with simultaneous aggregation-induced emission (AIE), multi-responsive polymorphs, mechanoluminescence, and electroluminescence is challenging.
• Existing materials often lack the ability to exhibit multiple stimuli-responsive behaviors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and synthesize novel anthracene-based organic emitters with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) properties.
• To achieve multi-responsive polymorphs, mechanoluminescence, and electroluminescence in organic materials.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of two anthracene-based compounds: 10-(4-(9H-carbazol-9-yl)phenyl)anthracene-9-carbonitrile (CzPACN) and 10-(4-(di-p-tolylamino)phenyl)anthracene-9-carbonitrile (DTPACN).
• Controlled temperature to induce polymorphic phases (DTPACN-α, DTPACN-β, DTPACN-γ).
• Fabrication of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) using CzPACN and DTPACN as emitters.

Main Results:

• CzPACN exhibited bright blue emission, while DTPACN showed bright green emission in solution.
• Three polymorphic phases of DTPACN were achieved, exhibiting distinct mechanoluminescent responses (red-shifted or blue-shifted emission).
• Fabricated blue and green OLEDs achieved maximum external quantum efficiencies (EQEmax) of 5.5% and 5.7%, respectively.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully designed and synthesized multifunctional organic emitters with AIE and multi-responsive properties.
• Polymorphism control offers a strategy for tuning mechanoluminescence in organic materials.
• The developed materials show potential for advanced optoelectronic applications, including OLEDs.