Fusing three perylenebisimide branches and a truxene core into a star-shaped chromophore with strong two-photon excited fluorescence and high photostability

A novel star-shaped chromophore, Tr-PBI, was constructed by fusing three perylenebisimide branches and a truxene core. Tr-PBI exhibits high photostability and excellent two-photon properties: the maximum of δ(TPA) is 11,000 GM at 990 nm and fluorescence quantum efficiency Φ is 0.40 in THF.     

Copper based metal-organic molecular ring with inserted Keggin-type polyoxometalate: a stable photofunctional host-guest molecular system

Keggin polyphosphotungstate cluster was captured by a porous molecular ring with light sensitizing TPT molecules as connectors and copper ions as nodes. The self-assembly reaction gives a stable host-guest supramolecular system, demonstrating efficient heterogeneous photocatalytic behavior for the degradation of methyl orange in near-neutral conditions.     

Enhancing the Stokes' shift of BODIPY dyes via through-bond energy transfer and its application for Fe(3+)-detection in live cell imaging

Two energy transfer cassettes that exhibit a large pseudo Stokes' shift (up to 400 nm) due to efficient through-bond energy transfer (up to 99%) have been constructed. Selective binding of Fe(III) with the donor entity significantly suppresses the excitation energy transfer resulting in fluorescence quenching in aqueous solution and in living cells.     

Diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP)-based materials for organic photovoltaics

Diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) pigments have been widely used in inks, paints, and plastics since it was first developed back in the early 1970s. The DPP-based materials were gradually exploited by optical and electrical applications for the excellent fluorescent properties and good charge carrier mobility. In recent years, great interest has been focused on developing organic photovoltaic functional materials containing a DPP core and attractive efficiencies have been achieved. This feature article describes the application of DPP-based materials, highlighting the applications in optoelectrical fields.     

Photo- and thermally induced coloration of a crystalline MOF accompanying electron transfer and long-lived charge separation in a stable host-guest system

A new type of electron transfer (ET) system was built via the combination of a highly stable MOF host framework and methyl viologen guest molecule. The π-stacking arrangements adjust the distance between the D-A components, contributing to the formation of an ultra long-lived charge separated state in the photo/thermo dual stimuli-responsive complex.     

Double "plug and play" templates technology for photo controllable drug release polyelectrolyte multilayers

An approach for the generation of photo controllable drug release polyelectrolyte multilayers is developed by combining double "plug and play" (PnP) templates technology and host-guest chemistry. These multilayers exhibited a reversible drug loading and release achieved by the photoinduced isomerization.     

Low temperature preparation of crystalline ZrO2 coatings for improved elevated-temperature performances of Li-ion battery cathodes

Ultrathin crystalline ZrO(2) nanofilms have been facilely deposited on LiMn(2)O(4) particles at 120 °C using atomic layer deposition. The ZrO(2) coating shows high crystallinity, conformality and homogeneity, which contribute to considerably improved electrochemical performance of LiMn(2)O(4) at elevated temperature in lithium-ion batteries.     

An unusual Me3SiI-promoted [4+2] annulation and reduction: an efficient approach to construct 4H-benzopyrans

Me(3)SiI-promoted reaction of salicylic aldehydes with β-dicarbonyl compounds provided a facile way to construct 4H-benzopyrans in moderate to good yields. This tandem reaction proceeds with high efficiency through nucleophilic addition, silyl enol ether formation, substitution, reduction, and intramolecular nucleophilic cyclization.     

Chemical composition of essential oils of Litsea cubeba harvested from its distribution areas in China

Litsea cubeba (Lour.) Pers. is a promising industrial crop with fruits rich in essential oils. The chemical composition of essential oils of L. cubeba (EOLC) were determined for fruits harvested from eight regions in China. The overall essential oil content, obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS), ranged from 3.04% to 4.56%. In total, 59 compounds were identified, the dominant components being monoterpenes (94.4-98.4%), represented mainly by neral and geranial (78.7-87.4%). D-Limonene was unexpectedly a lesser constituent (0.7-5.3%) in fruits, which differed from previous reports (6.0-14.6%). Several components were only detected in certain regions and compounds such as o-cymene and eremophilene have never before been reported in EOLC. These results demonstrate significant regional variation in the chemical composition of EOLC. This investigation provides important information with regard to the bioactivity, breeding work and industrial applications of L. cubeba.     

H2O2 triggered sol-gel transition used for visual detection of glucose

A new approach for the visual detection of glucose based on a H(2)O(2) triggered sol-gel transition in combination with modified gold nanoparticles is reported.