Seeking new methods to obtain elaborate artificial on-demand photoswitching with multiple functionalities remains challenging. Most of the systems reported so far possess only one specific function and their nonemissive nature in the aggregated state inevitably limit their applications. Herein, a tailored cyanostilbene-based molecule with aggregation-induced emission characteristic was synthesized and was found to exhibit efficient, multiple and controllable photoresponsive behaviors under different conditions. Specifically, three different reactions were involved: (i) reversible Z/E isomerization under room light and thermal treatment in CHCN, (ii) UV-induced photocyclization with a concomitant dramatic fluorescence enhancement, and (iii) regio- and stereoselective photodimerization in aqueous medium with microcrystal formation. Experimental and theoretical analyses gave visible insights and detailed mechanisms of the photoreaction processes. Fluorescent 2D photopattern with enhanced signal-to-background ratio was fabricated based on the controllable "turn-on" and "turn-off" photobehaviors in different states. The present study thus paves an easy yet efficient way to construct smart multiphotochromes for unique applications.

Decomposing chemical interactions into bonds and other higher order interactions is a common practice to analyse chemical structures, and gave birth to many chemical concepts, despite the fact that the decomposition itself might be subjective in nature. Fragment molecular orbitals (FMOs) offer a more rigorous alternative to such intuition, but might be less interpretable due to extensive delocalisation in FMOs. Inspired by the Principal Component Analysis in statistics, we hereby present a novel framework, Principal Interacting Orbital (PIO) analysis, that can very quickly identify the "dominant interacting orbitals" that are semi-localised and easily interpretable, while still maintaining mathematical rigor. Many chemical concepts that are often taken for granted, but could not be easily inferred from other computational techniques like FMO analysis, can now be visualised as PIOs. We have also illustrated, through various examples covering both organic and inorganic chemistry, how PIO analysis could help us pinpoint subtle features that might play determining roles in bonding and reactions.