Research Projects

The chemistry of π-conjugated building blocks has seen a revival in diverse fields to their interdisciplinary applications. However, utilization of these organic chromophores in solid state chemistry has been a challenge due to the quenching of luminescence in the solid state known as aggregation causes quenching (ACQ). Introduction of Tetraphenylethene (TPE) chromophore in the structural design has paved the way for quenching due to aggregation inducing emission. Restricted intramolecular rotation (RIR) in TPE hinders the non-radiative transitions at the excited state and shows emission on aggregation. This phenomenon is also known as Aggregation Induced Emission (AIE). Herein, we propose the utilization of TPE as key building block for the construction of novel systems. The modifications on TPE core via functionalization and coupling reactions deliver novel TPE based chromophores. Furthermore, the incorporation of metal carbonyls to TPE based chromophores can impart triplet state characteristics, which pave the way for their applications in the field of photosensitizers, biological sensors, solid-state lighting materials, organic light-emitting diodes and luminescence-based sensors.