Precision Synthesis of Circularly Polarized Luminescence Active Organic Assemblies in Aqueous Media via Efficient Living Supramolecular Polymerization

Supramolecular materials due to their ordered arrangement, and efficient charge transport, exhibit great potential in optoelectronic applications. Nonetheless, precise structural control over the length and dispersity of supramolecular polymers is crucial for optimizing their properties and performance. Although recent advancements in living supramolecular polymerization (LSP) offer strategies for this control, research so far has primarily focused on structural aspects, overlooking the exploration of their functional implications. Moreover, studies have predominantly been conducted in organic media. In this study, we aim to utilize the LSP for structural control of functionally active supramolecular polymers in aqueous media. For this, we synthesized core-substituted naphthalene diimide-based (cNDI) fluorophores appended with chiral peptides. The initial control over the length and dispersity of the supramolecular polymer was attained by LSP where the resulting supramolecular polymer shows circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) property with efficient g lum (dissymmetry factor) of 1.3 (±0.03) × 10 –3 . Further structural control was achieved by seeding approaches where the system shows highly efficient seeding in aqueous media. This new insight not only advances our understanding of the utilization of LSP for structural control in functionally active materials but also paves the potential utilization of LSP for biological applications.