Luminescence Mechanochromism Induced by Cluster Isomerization

  • Brendan Huitorel
  • , Hani El Moll
  • , Marie Cordier
  • , Alexandre Fargues
  • , Alain Garcia
  • , Florian Massuyeau
  • , Charlotte Martineau-Corcos
  • , Thierry Gacoin
  • , Sandrine Perruchas

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Luminescent mechanochromic materials exhibiting reversible changes of their emissive properties in response to external mechanical forces are currently emerging as an important class of stimuli-responsive materials because of promising technological applications. Here, we report on the luminescence mechanochromic properties of a [Cu4I4(PPh3)4] copper iodide cluster presenting a chair geometry, being an isomer of the most common cubane form. This molecular cluster formulated [Cu4I4(PPh3)4]·2CHCl3 (1) exhibits a highly contrasted emission response to manual grinding, and, interestingly, the optical properties of the ground phase present striking similarities with those of the cubane isomer. In order to understand the underlying mechanism, a comparison with two related compounds has been conducted. The first one is a pseudopolymorph of 1 formulated as [Cu4I4(PPh3)4]·CH2Cl2 (2), which exhibits luminescent mechanochromic properties as well. The other one is also a chair compound but with a slightly different phosphine ligand, namely, [Cu4I4(PPh2C6H4CO2H)4] (3), lacking mechanochromic properties. Structural and optical characterizations of the clusters have been analyzed in light of previous electronic structure calculations. The results suggest an unpreceded mechanochromism phenomenon based on a solid-state chair → cubane isomer conversion. This study shows that polynuclear copper iodide compounds are particularly relevant for the development of luminescent mechanochromic materials.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)12379-12388
Number of pages10
JournalInorganic Chemistry
Volume56
Issue number20
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 16 Oct 2017

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Luminescence Mechanochromism Induced by Cluster Isomerization'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this