An inkjet-printable microemulsion system for colorimetric polydiacetylene supramolecules on paper substrates

Abstract

Owing to their flexible, light-weight and disposable properties, paper-based electronic and sensor systems have gained much attention. Efficient immobilization and patterning of functional materials on paper substrates are critical to device performance. Herein, we report an inkjet printable and photopolymerizable diacetylene (DA) containing microemulsion system that can be readily transferred to paper substrates using a common office inkjet printer. UV-induced polymerization afforded clean formation of polydiacetylene (PDA) supramolecules on paper and the polymer displayed a typical thermochromism. The resolution of the printed PDA images was found to be equivalent to that of conventional black ink. The randomly oriented DA in the oil phase was found to be transformed to self-assembled layered structures upon printing. The printed PDA supramolecules derived from 5,7dodecadiyne-1,12-diol bis[((butoxycarbonyl)methyl)urethane] (4BCMU) displayed a blue-to-red-toyellow color transition upon heating. Thus, the blue colored 4BCMU-derived polymer was converted to a red colored PDA at 100 C and further heating to 180 C resulted in the generation of a yellow colored PDA. Upon cooling to room temperature, the yellow colored PDA became red and a complete colorimetric reversibility was observed between red (30 C) and yellow (180 C). The thermally promoted reversible PDA phase transition was successfully applied to a banknote to demonstrate an application to a potential counterfeit prevention method.

Conjugated Polymer Dots for Ultra‐Stable Full‐Color Fluorescence Patterning

“…Information readout by photoluminescence offers a promising approach for prohibiting duplication of the original items. Therefore, fluorescent inks have been widely used in areas such as anticounterfeiting, information encryption, and information storage . So far, a variety of fluorescent materials have been developed and utilized as security inks.…”

Ultrafast and reversible thermochromism of a conjugated polymer material based on the assembly of peptide amphiphiles

“…2,3 The chromatic transition of PDA can be directly detected by the naked eye, enabling a broad spectrum of optoelectronic and sensing applications. [4][5][6][7][8][9] However, the available PDA materials oen suffer from a slow response time (tens of seconds to minutes), low reversibility (tens of cycles or even irreversible), a narrow working temperature range (less than 90 C without the introduction of inorganic components) and poor mechanical properties, mainly due to the relatively low structural regularity and strength of molecular interactions. Based on the same reasons, the available chromatic polymers have generally been made into powders or lms, and it remains challenging to achieve continuous bres that are required for wearable electronics, which are a promising direction in sensing applications.…”

“…5b) illustrated that C]C and C^C undergo a conformational transition during the heating process, as can be deduced from the shi of the peaks at 1454 cm À1 and 2086 cm À1 at room temperature to 1513 cm À1 and 2117 cm À1 at high temperature, respectively. 7,25 Obviously, the higher wavenumber corresponds to the higher energy of the conjugated C]C and C^C and the stronger absorption at the lower wavelength peak in the UV-vis spectrum, with the material showing a red colour. Furthermore, the Raman spectra from 30 to 80 C also corroborated that the conformational transitions of C]C or C^C were reversible (Fig.…”

A Litmus‐Type Colorimetric and Fluorometric Volatile Organic Compound Sensor Based on Inkjet‐Printed Polydiacetylenes on Paper Substrates

“…In order to fabricate a paper‐based sensor strip for differentiation of VOCs, the DA monomer, 4BCMU, shown in Figure 1A was applied to an inkjet‐printable microemulsion system 9. Preparation of a stable microemulsion was carried out by adding 4BCMU dissolved in 1,2,4‐trimethylbenzene to an aqueous solution containing 1‐propanol and SDS (See Section 2).…”

“…The 4BCMU ink emulsions were prepared by using a previously reported method 9. Briefly, 4BCMU (0.12 g) was dissolved in 0.69 g of 1,2,4‐trimethylbenzene.…”