Recent research progress on organoboron-based stimuli responsive materials

Abstract

Organoboron-based stimuli-responsive materials have attracted intense research interest over the past decade owing to their broad utility in optoelectronics, chemical sensing, and smart devices. The boron center combines Lewis acidity, pronounced electron-accepting character, and synthetically tunable orbital hybridization, enabling boron-embedded scaffolds to undergo rapid and reversible structural or electronic transformations under optical, thermal, mechanical, or electrical stimuli. These perturbations modulate intra- and intermolecular interactions, producing pronounced changes in photophysical signature, charge-transport behavior, or mechanical response that can be exploited for real-time optical read-out or switchable device function. This review describes recent progress in boron-containing responsive systems ranging from small molecules and polymers to supramolecular assemblies, with emphasis on luminescent materials and representative advances of the last five years. Current challenges and future directions toward next-generation boron-based smart materials are also discussed.