Through-Space Conjugation Engineering in Methylated Tetraphenylethene Derivatives

Abstract

This work reports methylated tetraphenylethene derivatives exhibiting systematically enhanced and blue-shifted emission due to increased methylation-induced steric hindrance and reduced through-space conjugation (TSC). Temperature-dependent photophysical studies show TSC strength varies with temperature, weakening at cryogenic temperatures and causing emission blueshifts. These insights advance the mechanistic understanding of TSC in rigid fluorophores, providing foundational principles for the rational design of tunable TSC-based luminescent materials.