Amplified Circularly Polarized Luminescence of Chiral AIE‐active Tetraphenylbutadiene Derivatives in Nematic Liquid Crystal

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Authors: Xiaofang Peng, Yanji Li, Zihan Li, Ziyu Zhang, Junge Zhi, Xiaofang Li, Yuping Dong
Cited by: 0
References: 70

Abstract

ABSTRACT Circularly polarized luminescent (CPL) materials featuring high luminescence dissymmetry factors ( g lum ), high photoluminescence quantum yields ( Φ PL ), and tunable emission properties are essential for practical applications. Herein, three chiral aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) tetraphenylbutadiene (TPB) derivatives (TPB‐Chol * ‐H, TPB‐Chol * ‐CHO, TPB‐Chol * ‐OC 6 ) with high Φ PL were synthesized, each bearing symmetric chiral bis‐cholesteryl moieties and different electron‐donating/accepting groups. When employed as chiral dopants, minute quantities of each derivative were individually doped into the achiral nematic liquid crystal (LC) 5CB, affording three series of luminescent chiral nematic LC composite systems (TPB‐N * ‐LCs). These composites exhibit remarkable CPL activity with high g lum values, attributed to host‐guest interactions that facilitate co‐assembly into ordered supramolecular helices and chiral amplification, despite the chiral AIE dopant itself lacking CPL emission. CPL signals and g lum values enhance with increasing chiral dopant loading, peaking at +0.31, +0.42, and +0.58 for TPB‐Chol * ‐H/5CB, TPB‐Chol * ‐CHO/5CB, and TPB‐Chol * ‐OC 6 /5CB, respectively, at 3 wt% doping. Notably, the introduction of electron‐donating hexyloxy groups (TPB‐Chol * ‐OC 6 ) or electron‐accepting aldehyde groups (TPB‐Chol * ‐CHO) modulates molecular packing, compatibility with 5CB host, and intermolecular interactions. Doping TPB‐Chol * ‐OC 6 into 5CB achieves the optimal performance, with g lum = +0.58 and Φ PL = 84.5%. This work offers an effective strategy for developing CPL materials with simultaneously high g lum and Φ PL .

Fields of Study & Subjects

Liquid Crystal Research Advancements Luminescence and Fluorescent Materials Synthesis and Properties of Aromatic Compounds

Publication details

Journal / source
Chemistry - A European Journal
Volume
32
Issue
10
Pages
e03511–e03511
Publication date
12 January 2026
Language
EN