A solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials
Abstract Solid solutions are a unique and elegant crystal engineering strategy to control the properties of crystalline materials, and the tunability of physicochemical properties it provides has a wide scope of applications. In this research, we bring this strategy to the realm of smart molecular c...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61723-z |
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| _version_ | 1849764099387293696 |
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| author | Yang Ye Di Wu Ying Sun Dechen Wang Yuanhang Wang Na Wang Hongxun Hao Liang Li Panče Naumov Chuang Xie |
| author_facet | Yang Ye Di Wu Ying Sun Dechen Wang Yuanhang Wang Na Wang Hongxun Hao Liang Li Panče Naumov Chuang Xie |
| author_sort | Yang Ye |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Solid solutions are a unique and elegant crystal engineering strategy to control the properties of crystalline materials, and the tunability of physicochemical properties it provides has a wide scope of applications. In this research, we bring this strategy to the realm of smart molecular crystals and explore solid solutions of organic photomechanical crystals to create flexible structures that exhibit a gradient of predetermined emissive, mechanical, and reactive properties. Specifically, we demonstrate that fluorescence, mechanical properties, and solid-state photoreactivity in a binary mixed crystal system of 9-anthraldehyde (9AA) and 9-methylanthracene (9MA) can be simultaneously and precisely tuned simply by changing the composition. The statistical distribution of the two components in the solid solution was utilized to prepare a heterodimer by a cross-reaction between the molecules of the two components. The effect of doping on the rate and the extent of the solid-state photoreaction further enables modulation of the photomechanical bending of the crystals. This study shows that the solid solution method enables access to smart adaptive crystals that can perform specific solid-state photoreactions, exhibit a photomechanical response, and support flexible organic devices that cannot be achieved through conventional chemical modification strategies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-18dded989a4643a4a41613768f2de9e7 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj-art-18dded989a4643a4a41613768f2de9e72025-08-20T03:05:14ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-07-0116111110.1038/s41467-025-61723-zA solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materialsYang Ye0Di Wu1Ying Sun2Dechen Wang3Yuanhang Wang4Na Wang5Hongxun Hao6Liang Li7Panče Naumov8Chuang Xie9School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin UniversitySchool of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin UniversitySchool of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin UniversitySINOPEC Dalian (Fushun) Research Institute of Petroleum and PetrochemicalsSchool of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin UniversitySchool of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin UniversitySchool of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin UniversitySAFIR Novel Materials Development Lab, Sorbonne University Abu DhabiSmart Materials Lab, New York University Abu DhabiSchool of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin UniversityAbstract Solid solutions are a unique and elegant crystal engineering strategy to control the properties of crystalline materials, and the tunability of physicochemical properties it provides has a wide scope of applications. In this research, we bring this strategy to the realm of smart molecular crystals and explore solid solutions of organic photomechanical crystals to create flexible structures that exhibit a gradient of predetermined emissive, mechanical, and reactive properties. Specifically, we demonstrate that fluorescence, mechanical properties, and solid-state photoreactivity in a binary mixed crystal system of 9-anthraldehyde (9AA) and 9-methylanthracene (9MA) can be simultaneously and precisely tuned simply by changing the composition. The statistical distribution of the two components in the solid solution was utilized to prepare a heterodimer by a cross-reaction between the molecules of the two components. The effect of doping on the rate and the extent of the solid-state photoreaction further enables modulation of the photomechanical bending of the crystals. This study shows that the solid solution method enables access to smart adaptive crystals that can perform specific solid-state photoreactions, exhibit a photomechanical response, and support flexible organic devices that cannot be achieved through conventional chemical modification strategies.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61723-z |
| spellingShingle | Yang Ye Di Wu Ying Sun Dechen Wang Yuanhang Wang Na Wang Hongxun Hao Liang Li Panče Naumov Chuang Xie A solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials Nature Communications |
| title | A solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials |
| title_full | A solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials |
| title_fullStr | A solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials |
| title_full_unstemmed | A solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials |
| title_short | A solid-solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials |
| title_sort | solid solution approach for controllable photomechanical crystalline materials |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61723-z |
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