Cucurbit[8]uril-Induced Self-Sorting Heterodimer for Aqueous Red/NIR Delayed Emission.

Area of Science:

• Supramolecular Chemistry
• Materials Science
• Photophysics

Background:

• Developing red and near-infrared (NIR) delayed emission materials in aqueous environments is difficult.
• Such materials are crucial for applications like bioimaging.
• Existing methods often involve complex synthesis and purification.

Purpose of the Study:

• To create a simple supramolecular approach for achieving red and NIR delayed emission in water.
• To investigate a novel self-sorting heterodimer system for luminescence.
• To explore applications in bioimaging using aqueous-phase delayed emission.

Main Methods:

• Construction of a CB[8]-induced self-sorting heterodimer from simple small molecules.
• Utilizing a "two hosts and two guests" and "head-to-tail" binding configuration.
• Formation of a hydrogel by assembling the heterodimer with nanoclay.

Main Results:

• The BrMe-CB[8] system exhibited red-shifted absorption and dual red (620 nm) and NIR (720 nm) delayed emission in water.
• The unique binding configuration overcame electrostatic repulsion and facilitated charge transfer.
• The hydrogel formulation showed enhanced delayed emission properties.

Conclusions:

• A facile supramolecular strategy enables red/NIR aqueous-phase delayed emission using simple molecules.
• The self-sorting heterodimer approach simplifies material preparation.
• This work opens avenues for advanced biological imaging techniques.