Photoresponsive Polymers with Aggregation-Induced Emission

Abstract

Photoresponsive polymers have become one of the most important smart materials due to their unique advantages such as excellent sensitivity, high contrast, and rapid response. Endowing photoresponsive polymers with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) can not only enrich the research of materials science but also expand the applications of smart materials. Photoresponsive AIE polymers are generally constructed by combining AIE luminogens (AIEgens) with photoresponsive units via chemical, supramolecular, or physical strategies. In terms of the working mechanisms, two main responsive systems, namely, photochemical and photophysical, are summarized with specific application examples. Photoresponsive AIE polymers have been applied not only in chemosensors, photopatterning, and photodegradable materials but also in biosystems for photodynamic therapy, photothermal therapy, photoacoustic imaging, and photobiosynthesis. This Review concludes with a discussion on the challenges and perspectives for future directions in this field. All the achievements and advantages mentioned in this Review indicate the fascinating properties and bright future of photoresponsive AIE polymers.

Tetraphenylethene-Based Fluorescent Chemosensor with Mechanochromic and Aggregation-Induced Emission (AIE) Properties for the Selective and Sensitive Detection of Hg2+ and Ag+ Ions in Aqueous Media: Application to Environmental Analysis

“…In an aggregation-induced emission (AIE) process, weak or nonemissive luminogens become emissive due to the formation of their aggregates, which depends on the quantity of water in the mixture. These remarkably fluorescent luminogens, or AIEgens, are widely used interesting materials in diverse fields. − …”

Living Supramolecular Polymerization of Ultrastable Kinetic Species of Ir(III) Complexes in Aqueous Media

“…First, the emission spectra of the complexes in a H 2 O/CH 3 CN system at different water fractions ( f w ) indicate that complexes 1 and 2 are aggregation-induced and emission-active (Figures a and S2b). − The freshly prepared mixtures of 1 or 2 with f w of 70–90% were suspensions (Figure S5). Such an unstable state was not found below 50% water contents.…”

Fluorescent Polymers Conspectus

“…However, when the dye concentration increases, the dye molecules begin to agglomerate in the particle core, causing the dyes’ light emission to be quenched. AIE polymers have surmounted this challenge since the polymer molecules become extremely emissive when aggregated [ 145 ]. AIE bioconjugates, formed by covalently linking AIE luminogens to biomolecules, are particularly promising candidates for biomedical applications due to their excellent biocompatibility, good water solubility, high specificity to the target of interest, wide functionality, and smart responsiveness [ 146 , 147 , 148 ].…”