Chiral and photo‐responsive calix[4]arene (trans CAC4) host system that can be adsorbed onto gold surfaces was rationally designed and produced in quantitative yields. Chiral recognition through strong host–guest interaction between trans CAC4 and (R)‐naproxen was confirmed by fluorescence titration and 1H NMR analysis. Functionalization of the gold surface with trans CAC4 was demonstrated by increased contact angle and XPS measurement. Photoswitching by trans‐cis isomerization of CAC4 and CAC4‐modified gold surfaces was confirmed by UV‐vis spectroscopy and contact angle experiments. Trans CAC4‐modified gold surfaces showed selective adsorption towards (R)‐naproxen, while cis CAC4‐modified gold surfaces did not show any distinctive interaction with (R)/(S)‐naproxen. Langmuir isothermal plots and LSCM studies proved quantitative adsorption of (R)‐naproxen by the trans CAC4‐modified surface. This study demonstrated chiral recognition of a drug system by visual macroscopic changes, which may be used as a convenient methodology to separate bioactive enantiomers.

The self-assembly of macroscopic droplets on interfaces has attracted much attention and shown promising potential in the field of materials as a sensing or delivery system. Herein, we reported a new strategy to construct a Dtartaric acid-functionalized pillar[5]arene (D-TP5) interface for macroscopic differentiation of histidine enantiomers. At the molecular level, it has been proved that D-TP5 has the ability to distinguish between L-Histidine and D-Histidine (K L / K D = 4.6). Furthermore, a functional D-TP5 surface was constructed by a click reaction and characterized by contact angle measurements and attenuated total reflection-Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses. The D-TP5 surface exhibited the selective dynamic adhesion of L-His droplets on the tilted interface. It means that a D-TP5 surface can distinguish histidine enantiomers at a macrolevel. The amount of D/L-His absorbed by a D-TP5 surface and the morphology of His particles formed by removing the solvent have been investigated to prove that the self-assembly of His occurs on the D-TP5 surface. The possible mechanism has been discussed from host−guest interaction and chiral recognition. The proposed chiral material displays rapidly remarkable selectivity and is convenient to be utilized, which should be suitable for comprehending chiral recognition processing and applied to chiral recognition detection of histidine in a living body.

Enantiomers of various drug molecules have a specific effect on living organisms. Accordingly, developing a sample method for the efficient and rapid recognition of chiral drug enantiomers is of great industrial value and physiological significance. Here, inspired by the structure of ion channels in living organisms, we developed a chiral nanosensor based on an artificial tip-modified nanochannel system that allows efficient selective recognition of chiral drugs. In this system, l-alanine-pillar­[5]­arenes as selective receptors were introduced on the tip side of conical nanochannels to form an enantioselective “gate”. The selective coefficient of our system toward R-propranolol is 4.96, which is higher than the traditional fully modified nanochannels in this work.

The spreading of pesticide droplets on the surface of superhydrophobic plants is an important process, which can prevent the inadequate retention such as bouncing, splashing, and drifting, thereby improving the efficiency of pesticide utilization and reducing soil and groundwater pollution. Herein, we report an approach to fabricate a supramolecular amphiphilic system that significantly contributes to this issue. The hydrophilic amino-pillar[5]arene was synthesized, which could form vesicles with the hydrophobic long-chain guest. This host−guest complex decreased the surface tension, which greatly promotes the spreading of droplets. This study provides a new strategy for prolonging pesticide retention and reducing pesticide loss.

Functional materials with circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) have attracted tremendous attention due to their promising applications in three‐dimensional displays, chiral recognition and catalysis, photoelectronic devices, contrast imaging, information encryption, and other fields. Among various CPL‐active materials, polymeric systems with aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) have emerged as excellent candidates because of their efficient aggregate‐state fluorescence, large solid‐state dissymmetry factor, excellent processibility, diversified self‐assembly behaviors, and readily switchable CPL properties. This review summarizes and discusses the recent progress as well as future perspective of diverse AIE polymer systems with CPL, including CPL‐active covalent AIE polymers, CPL‐active supramolecular AIE polymers, and AIEgen/polymer composites with CPL. According to the location or introduction method of AIEgen in polymer structures, this review further divides CPL‐active covalent AIE polymers into three categories, including polymers with AIEgen in main chains, polymers with AIEgen in side chains, and CPL‐active polymers with clusterization‐triggered emission. CPL‐active supramolecular AIE polymers are discussed based on the driving force for the formation of supramolecular polymers, including host–guest interactions, metal coordination, and other non‐covalent interactions. Moreover, examples on the construction of CPL‐active AIEgen/polymer composites by physically mixing AIEgens with chiral (supra)polymers are also presented. This review is anticipated to provide readers with an overall view on the design strategies of CPL‐active AIE polymers, and facilitate further research on the development of CPL materials and AIE polymers with advanced applications.

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Membrane separation technology has been widely applied in material separation fields. However, it still has the disadvantage of poor selectivity at nanometer and sub-nanometer scales. Here, two kinds of pillar[6]arene with opposite charges were prepared by modification, and the aligned nanochannel composite membrane was successfully constructed by directional assembly on a negatively charged silicon interface. The precise sieving properties of aligned channels were studied using the xylene isomer as a model molecule. It has been proved that the aligned channel can better maintain the pore size close to the macrocyclic molecules, which is beneficial to realize the customized construction of the through-ordered nanochannel. The experimental results show that the aligned nanochannel can selectively transport xylene isomers, and the flux (J) values of o, m, and p-xylene were 9.2, 11.6, and 171.3 nM m–2 h–1, respectively. Finally, the separation and purification of mixed samples have been achieved. This method provides a strategy for constructing ordered nanochannels.

Chiral arginine was introduced through layer-by-layer assembly onto a calix[4]arene-modified surface to control the selective adsorption of ibuprofen enantiomer droplets.