Near-field optical addressing of luminescent photoswitchable supramolecular systems embedded in inert polymer matrices

Optical recording and luminescence readout of novel covalently linked photochrome/luminophore supramolecular complexes has been demonstrated by near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM). Localized UV irradiation of these complexes dispersed in polymeric matrices resulted in photoinduced state switching and a concomitant increase in emission intensity. Subsequent luminescence imaging showed well-resolved luminescent data bit arrays with good signal-to-noise ratios. Spatially resolved emission spectra of the luminescent data bits confirmed the switching mechanism.