Upon mechanical stimulation, 9-anthryl gold(I) isocyanide complex 3 exhibited a bathochromic shift of its emission color from the visible to the infrared (IR) region, which is unprecedented in its magnitude. Prior to exposure to the mechanical stimulus, the polymorphs 3α and 3β exhibit emission wavelength maxima (λ) at 448 and 710 nm, respectively. Upon grinding, the λ of 3α and 3β are bathochromically shifted to 900 nm, i.e., Δλ (3α) = 452 nm or 1.39 eV. Polymorphs 3α and 3β thus represent the first examples of mechanochromic luminescent materials with λ in the IR region.

Single-molecule spectroscopy (SMS) of a dual fluorescent flapping molecular probe (N-FLAP) enabled realtime nanoscale monitoring of local free volume dynamics in polystyrenes. The SMS study was realized by structural improvement of a previously reported flapping molecule by nitrogen substitution, leading to increased brightness (22 times) of the probe. In a polystyrene thin film at the temperature of 5 K above the glass transition, the spectra of a single N-FLAP molecule undergo frequent jumps between short-and long-wavelength forms, the latter one indicating planarization of the molecule in the excited state. The observed spectral jumps were statistically analyzed to reveal the dynamics of the molecular environment. The analysis together with MD and QM/MM calculations show that the excited-state planarization of the flapping probe occurs only when sufficiently large polymer free volume of more than, at least, 280 Å 3 is available close to the molecule, and that such free volume lasts for an average of 1.2 s.

Lanthanide (Ln(III)) complexes form an important class of highly efficient luminescent materials showing characteristic line emission after efficient light absorption by the surrounding ligands. The efficiency is however lowered by back energy transfer from Ln(III) ion to the ligands, especially at higher temperatures. Here we report a new strategy to reduce back energy transfer losses. Nonanuclear lanthanide clusters containing terbium and gadolinium ions, TbnGd9−n clusters ([TbnGd9−n(μ-OH)10(butylsalicylate)16]+NO3−, n = 0, 1, 2, 5, 8, 9), were synthesized to investigate the effect of energy transfer between Tb(III) ions on back energy transfer. The photophysical properties of TbnGd9−n clusters were studied by steady-state and time-resolved spectroscopic techniques and revealed a longer emission lifetime with increasing number of Tb(III) ions in TbnGd9−n clusters. A kinetic analysis of temperature dependence of the emission lifetime show that the energy transfer between Tb(III) ions competes with back energy transfer. The experimental results are in agreement with a theoretical rate equation model that confirms the role of energy transfer between Tb(III) ions in reducing back energy transfer losses. The results provide a new strategy in molecular design for improving the luminescence efficiency in lanthanide complexes which is important for potential applications as luminescent materials.

The use of multidentate chelating ligands enriches the geometric diversity of coordinated gold clusters, offering much knowledge to benefit the understanding of their unique electronic structures and optical properties. Herein we report different behaviors of [core+exo]-type Au 6 clusters bearing C3-and C4-bridged diphosphines (1 and 2), highlighting profound effects of the steric constraints of the ligand environments on the excited-state structural dynamics. Although the Au 6 geometries of 1 and 2 in the crystalline states were somewhat different, their absorption spectra in solution were almost similar. However, marked differences were found in the photoluminescence properties; phosphorescent-type emission was dominantly observed for 1, whereas 2 gave both fluorescenceand phosphorescence-type emissions. Theoretical calculations showed that the bridging chains influence the geometries of the Au 6 unit in the excited states, leading to the observed differences in emission behaviors.

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