Spatiotemporal Mapping of Efficient Chiral Induction by Helicene-Type Additives in Copolymer Thin Films

We observed efficient induction of chirality in polyfluorene copolymer thin films by mixing with helicene-type chiral additives based on the dibenzo[c,h]acridine motif. Images obtained from circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) microscopy provide information about the chiral arrangements in the thin films with diffraction-limited resolution. The CD signal shows a characteristic dependence on the film thickness, which supports a supramolecular origin of the strong chiral response of the copolymer. In particular, we demonstrate the discrimination between films of opposite chirality based on their ultrafast transient chiral response through the use of femtosecond broadband CD spectroscopy and a newly developed setup for transient CPL spectroscopy with 28 ps time resolution. A systematic variation of the enantiomeric excess of the chiral additive shows that the Sergeants and Soldiers concept and Majority Rules are not obeyed.

Automated summary

We have observed efficient induction of chirality in polyfluorene copolymer thin films by mixing with helicene-type chiral additives based on the dibenzo[c,h]acridine motif. Circular dichroism (CD) and circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) microscopy provide information about the chiral arrangements in the thin films. The CD signal shows a characteristic dependence on the film thickness, supporting a supramolecular origin of the strong chiral response.