Advancing Dynamic Polymer Mechanochemistry through Synergetic Conformational Gearing

Abstract

Harnessing mechanical force to modulate material properties and enhance biomechanical functions is essential for advancing smart materials and bioengineering. Polymer mechanochemistry provides an emerging toolkit for exploring unconventional chemical transformations and modulating molecular structures through mechanical force. One of the key challenges is developing innovative force-sensing mechanisms for precise and in situ force detection. This study introduces mDPAC, a dynamic and sensitive mechanophore, demonstrating its mechanochromic properties through synergetic conformational gearing. Its unique mechanoresponsive mechanism is based on the simultaneous conformational synergy between its phenazine and phenyl moieties, facilitated by a worm-gear-like structure. We confirm mDPAC's complex mechanochemical response and elucidate its mechanotransduction mechanism through our experimental data and comprehensive simulations. The compatibility of mDPAC with hydrogels is particularly notable, highlighting its potential for applications in aqueous biological environments as a dynamic force sensor. Moreover, mDPAC's multicolored mechanochromic responses facilitate direct force sensing and visual detection, paving the way for precise and real-time mechanical force sensing in bulk materials.