Chengyuan Wang

5H-Benzo[b]carbazole (BCZ) and its functionalized derivatives (2PBCZ and 3PBCZ) are designed and synthesized, which have phenyl substituents selectively introduced at different positions. Single-crystal structure analysis and theoretical calculations reveal that the most twisted molecule 2PBCZ surprisingly possesses the most efficient two-dimensional electronic couplings, although they all form herringbone packing structures. Their charge transport properties in OFETs are investigated for the first time, and 2PBCZ shows superior hole mobilities up to 0.47 cm² V^-1 s^-1.

In recent years, photodynamic therapy (PDT) has emerged as a promising alternative to traditional cancer treatment methods owing to its spatiotemporal controllability and minimal systemic toxicity. However, their clinical application is hindered by poor tumor specificity of conventional photosensitizers (PSs). Herein, we developed a novel near-infrared multifunctional fluorescent probe (CMN), which was expected to enable "diagnosis–treatment–monitoring" integrated PDT. Probe CMN was capable of targeting cell membranes, as well as the capability of tumor specificity and differentiating normal cells from cancer cells through viscosity response, which enabled its use in tumor diagnosis and real-time monitoring of the treatment process. Meanwhile, upon white light irradiation, CMN with the PDT function can generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), effectively inducing tumor cell death. Importantly, real-time visualization of cell membrane damage was achieved using CMN via dynamic fluorescence imaging, providing direct observation for therapeutic effects during PDT. In vivo studies further confirmed that CMN can perform tumor-specific imaging on tumor-bearing mouse models, and its PDT efficacy in mice can be monitored via in situ tumor visualization. In summary, this "diagnosis–treatment–monitoring" integrated photosensitive probe CMN not only enhanced the precision of PDT but also realized the real-time visualization of PDT, possessing significant potential for cancer therapy.

Four naphthalenediimide-based donor–acceptor structured organic photothermal materials are synthesized with systematically engineered donor–acceptor connecting manners and alkyl chains. The molecular organizations in the solid state are manipulated from “dimer” to “tetramer”, which endows the latter with the widest absorption, presumably due to its strongest polarization effect. The “tetramer” material consistently outperforms the other three in solar-driven interfacial water evaporation and water–thermoelectricity cogeneration devices and is one of the highest-performance organic photothermal materials.

“Y-shaped” cyanostilbene derivatives achieve dynamic photochromism regulation and stable white-light emission via photo-isomerization, outperforming “V-shaped” counterparts in both solution and polymer matrices.

Organic luminogens (OLs) with piezochromic (PC) properties have attracted significant attention for their varied applications in chemical sensors, organic optoelectronic devices, biological imaging, etc. In this work, we designed and synthesized three donor–acceptor–donor- or donor–acceptor-structured OLs with different donor or acceptor moieties. Their photophysical properties in both dilute solution and aggregated states were studied through various spectroscopic analytical methods, and their PC properties were investigated under mechanical grinding (MG) conditions. The OLs containing cyanostilbene moiety exhibited a photoemission shift up to ~45 nm after simple grinding, while that was only ~10 nm for cyanostyrene-containing OL. Combined with the powder X-ray diffraction analysis, the incorporation of the cyanostilbene moiety is inferred to play an important role in inducing the apparent PC properties. Our study not only reports novel OLs with good PC properties, but also discusses the structure–property relationships in order to provide guidance for future rational design and the development of novel PC materials.

A novel asymmetric indenone-fused tetraazatetracene based bent N-heteroarene is reported showing good air-stable n-type performance in OFETs.