Aggregation induced emission versus aggregation caused quenching: tuning the emission behaviour of liquid crystalline materials

Abstract

Luminescent liquid crystals have attracted attention over the past decades. In this study we introduce a new concept for thermo-responsive luminescent materials. The unique combination of two classes of luminophores, showing either aggregation-induced emission (AIE) or aggregation-caused quenching (ACQ) within a liquid crystalline matrix, yielded an emission shift from green (534 nm) to red (619 nm). Thereby, the emission color is controlled by the state of aggregation within the liquid crystalline material, which can be controlled by temperature. This temperature-controlled material mimics an emissive traffic light and is suitable as a thermo sensor warning of heat.