Conjugation- and Aggregation-Directed Design of Covalent Organic Frameworks as White-Light-Emitting Diodes

2D covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have emerged as a promising class of organic luminescent materials due to their structural diversity, which allows the systematic tuning of organic building blocks to optimize emitting properties. However, a significant knowledge gap exists between the design strategy and the fundamental understanding of the key structural parameters that determine their photophysical properties. In this work, we report two highly emissive sp(2)-C-COFs and the direct correlation of the structure (conjugation and aggregation) with their light absorption/emission, charge transfer (CT), and exciton dynamics, the key properties that determine their function as luminescent materials. We show that white light can be obtained by simply coating COFs on an LED strip or mixing the two COFs. Using the combination of time-resolved absorption and emission spectroscopy as well as computational prediction, we show that the planarity, conjugation, orientation of the dipole moment, and interlayer aggregation not only determine the light-harvesting ability of COFs but also control the exciton relaxation pathway and photoluminescent quantum yield.

Automated summary

2D covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have emerged as a promising class of organic luminescent materials due to their structural diversity. This study reports two highly emissive sp(2)-C-COFs and explores the correlation between structure and light absorption/emission, charge transfer (CT), and exciton dynamics. The research shows that the planarity, conjugation, orientation of the dipole moment, and interlayer aggregation play important roles in determining the light-harvesting ability and photoluminescent quantum yield of COFs.