Structure-Tuned and Thermodynamically Controlled Mechanochromic Self-Recovery of AIE-Active Au(I) Complexes

Stimuli-responsive luminescent materials which show various luminescent alteration upon external mechanical forces have drew extraordinary attention owing to their promising application in smart materials. Amongst, the phenomena of self-recovered mecha-nochromic luminescence constitute only a small proportion, let alone systematic research. Here, we developed a series of new Au(I) complexes (AuIB-Cn, n = 5~10) featuring aggregation-induced emission properties and systematically studied their solid-state self-recovery properties. It has been shed light on that the self-recovery speed could be elaborately tuned by modifying alkyl chains or changing the temperature. Increasing the alkyl chain length could speed up the self-recovery due to much faster intermolecular rearrangement. Lowering temperature allowed for the capture of the originally superfast and unobservable self-recoveries for C8~C10 due to the decreased molecular mobility. In addition, we also demonstrated the great potentials of these AIE-active complexes serving as self-erasing rewritable paper and anti-counterfeit carbonless copy paper in practical applications.