Bipyridine-based aggregation-induced phosphorescent emission (AIPE)-active gold(I) complex with reversible phosphorescent mechanochromism and self-assembly characteristics

Mechanochromic luminescent materials have received a great deal of attention due to their potential applications in sensors and optoelectronic devices. Meanwhile, the aggregation-induced emission active materials commonly exhibit bright luminescence upon aggregate formation, which is extremely important for preparation of high-contrast mechanochromism materials. On the other hand, it is well-known that pyridine-type ligands are one of the most versatile ligands. Unfortunately, the number of pyridine gold complexes is quite limited, not to mention pyridine-containing gold(I) complexes with aggregation-induced emission or mechanochromic phenomenon. In this work, a new bipyridine-based aggregation-induced phosphorescent emission active gold(I) complex is reported. The novel luminogen exhibits reversible mechanochromism phenomenon with phosphorescent changes between weak green and strong yellow emissions. Moreover, the luminogen shows a significative self-assembly behavior. This work will be beneficial for the exploitation of force-responsive phosphorescent sensor materials with remarkable self-assembly behavior.