journal article·2025-06Open access

Tuning Aggregation in Liquid‐Crystalline Squaraine Chromophores

Tianyi Tan, Yu Cao, Changlong Chen, Sanliang Ling, Gaolei Hou, Martin J. Paterson, Xin Wang, Ying Chen, Kai Jiang, Gang He, Goran Ungar, Georg H. Mehl, Feng Liu

Advanced Science· Volume 12· Issue 22

Abstract

Abstract For a series of novel hydroxy anilino squaraines (SQ), separated via short flexible spacers from bulky dendrons, hexagonal columnar (Col hex ) liquid‐crystalline (LC) phase behavior is detected. The optical properties of these SQ systems, designed for melting below 80 °C, very low for SQ systems, are found to be determined by the LC structures which in turn are governed by volume and steric effects of the dendrons affecting the temperature‐dependent interplay between monomeric species and H‐aggregates in the LC state, ultimately responsible for the optical properties. Experimental results are corroborated by self‐consistent field theory (SCFT) as well as time‐dependent density functional theory calculations (TD‐DFT). The results demonstrate a new strategy for dynamically tuning aggregates and optical properties for the prescriptive functionalization of the LC SQ materials and with potential for other aggregating systems.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Liquid Crystal Research Advancements · Surfactants and Colloidal Systems · Porphyrin and Phthalocyanine Chemistry

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Shaanxi International Research Center for Soft Matter, State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 P. R. China

MOE Key Laboratory for Nonequilibrium Synthesis and Modulation of Condensed Matter, School of Physics Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 P. R. China

Advanced Materials Research Group Faculty of Engineering University of Nottingham Nottingham NG7 2RD UK

Institute of Chemical Sciences Heriot‐Watt University Edinburgh EH14 4AS UK

Hunan Key Laboratory for Computation and Simulation in Science and Engineering Key Laboratory of Intelligent Computing and Information Processing of Ministry of Education School of Mathematics and Computational Science Xiangtan University Xiangtan Hunan 411105 P. R. China

Frontier Institute for Science and Technology Xi'an Jiaotong University Xi'an 710049 P. R. China

School of Chemical Materials and Biological Engineering University of Sheffield Sheffield S1 3JD UK

Department of Chemistry University of Hull Hull HU6 7RX UK

Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China

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