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An Unexpected Chromophore–Solvent Reaction Leads to Bicomponent Aggregation‐Induced Phosphorescence
Author(s) -
Chen Biao,
Huang Wenhuan,
Su Hao,
Miao Hui,
Zhang Xuepeng,
Zhang Guoqing
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
angewandte chemie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1521-3757
pISSN - 0044-8249
DOI - 10.1002/ange.202000865
Subject(s) - phosphorescence , chromophore , photochemistry , chemistry , quenching (fluorescence) , solvent , quantum yield , yield (engineering) , acceptor , solid state , fluorescence , materials science , organic chemistry , physics , quantum mechanics , metallurgy , condensed matter physics
Abstract Organic luminogens with persistent room‐temperature phosphorescence (RTP) have found a wide range of applications. However, many RTP luminogens are prone to severe quenching in the crystalline state. Herein, we report a strategy to construct a donor‐sp 3 ‐acceptor type luminogen that exhibits aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) while the donor‐sp 2 ‐acceptor counterpart structure exhibits a non‐emissive solid state. Unexpectedly, it was discovered that a trace amount (0.01 %) of the structurally similar derivative, produced by a side reaction with the DMF solvent, could induce strong RTP with an absolute RTP yield up to 25.4 % and a lifetime of 48 ms, although the substance does not show RTP by itself. Single‐crystal XRD‐based calculations suggest that n–σ* orbital interactions as a result of structural similarity may be responsible for the strong RTP in the bicomponent system. This study provides a new insight into the design of multi‐component, solid‐state RTP materials from organic molecular systems.