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Efficient near-infrared circularly polarised luminescence (CPL) between 1400 and 1600 nm of four enantiomer pairs of homoand heteroleptic complexes have been successfully measured. Utilising inexpensive optics and a commercial fluorimeter, discrimination of the left and right circularly polarised components was achieved, yielding remarkably high dissymmetry values in emission (glum). Most notably, homoleptic complexes CsEr(hfbc)4 (hfbc = 3-heptafluorobutylyrylcamphorate) and [TMG−H+]3Er(BINOLate)3 (TMG = 1,1,3,3-tetramethylguanidine; BINOLate = 1,1’-bi-2-naphtholate) show maximal |glum| values of 0.83 (at 1510 nm) and 0.29 (at 1545 nm) respectively, with the former complex possessing the strongest CPL within the NIR to date.

Chiral tetraarylethylene-diketopyrrolopyrroles, synthesized by a strategy involving a Mitsunobu type N-alkylation and Suzuki–Miyaura coupling, show CD and circularly polarized luminescence in solution and enhanced emission in the aggregate states.

We have studied the impact of achiral substituents on the chiral supramolecular architectures of diketopyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrrole-1,2,3-1H-triazole (DPP) dyes. We decorated the same chiral DPP motif with substituent groups on the nitrogen atoms of the lactam moiety: the hydrophobic n-octyl alkyl chain, the hydrophilic tri(ethyleneglycol) (TEG) chain and the thermo-cleavable tert-butoxycarbonyl (t-Boc) carbamate group. In spite of having identical conjugated chromophore and chiral appendages, in aggregated form the three dyes displayed profoundly different optical,chiroptical,electrochemical and thermal features. ECD measurements revealed differences in the aggregation modes, which would be in accessible by most other techniques. We found strong chiroptical features, which would have major implications in the context of chiral organic opto-electronics and in the development of other highly innovative technological applications.

Chiral lanthanide complexes can be prepared by choosing the achiral antenna ligand and the chiral inducer independently. With this modular approach, complexes optimized for use in efficient CP-OLEDs may be obtained.

A straightforward two-step synthesis protocol affords a series of chiral amide-based bis-pyridine substituted polyether macrocycles. One ligand is particularly able to complex Terbium(III) ion spontaneously. Upon complexation, interesting chiroptical properties are observed both in absorbance (ECD) and in fluorescence (CPL). In ligand-centered electronic circular dichroism, a sign inversion coupled with a signal enhancement is measured; while an easily detectable metal-centered circularly polarized luminescence with a glum of 0.05 is obtained for the main 5D4 → 7F5 terbium transition. The coordination mode and structure of the complex was studied using different analysis methods (NMR analysis, spectrophotometric titration and solid-state elucidation).

The reaction of Ln(NO

The enantiomers of carboline-based cryptates were successfully resolved by chiral HPLC. These complexes show high configurational stability under harsh conditions and their absolute configuration was determined by comparing theoretical and experimental electronic circular dichroism spectra. The enantiopure cryptates exhibit strong circularly polarized luminescence with a maximum dissymmetry factor glum = 0.25 for the f-f transition 5D0→7F1 (λ = 594 nm) under visible light excitation at λex = 400 nm.

Moving from the simple concept that reflection onto a mirror surface changes the handedness of circularly polarized light, we describe what happens to the emergent polarization in two different cases after reflection on a back mirror. In the first case, a regular emitter is taken into account, where reflection has the effect to destroy the emergent polarization. In the second case, we show what could happen when a hypothetical apparently non-reciprocal emitting material undergoes a similar experiment. These simple concepts have important implications in the design of efficient circularly polarized emitting devices.

We report the first example of very efficient NIR Circularly Polarized Luminescence (CPL) (around 970 nm) in water, obtained thanks to the combined use of a chiral Yb complex and of poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles. [YbL(tta)

International audience; Enantiopure helicene-based bis(pyrazol-1-yl)pyridine (bpp-[6]helicene), with the helicene unit in position 4 of the pyridine ring, have been prepared and structurally characterized. Their chiroptical properties have been studied experimentally, and both absorption and circular dichroism (CD) spectra have been reproduced theoretically by time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT). Remarkably, in spite of the remote localization of the helicene with respect to the coordination pocket of the bpp motif, chiral Eu(III) complexes based on these ligands show, however, circularly polarized luminescence in the visible region, sustained by TDDFT and CASSCF calculations, which also emphasize the possible antenna effect of the bpp ligand.

The chiroptical features of chiral diketopyrrolo[3,4-c]pyrrole (DPP) derivatives have been only marginally investigated to date. In this regard, we have synthesized ad hoc four chiral DPP dyes, functionalized with enantiopure alkyl groups from natural sources either on the lactam moieties or on the terminal positions of the π-conjugated backbone, to promote an efficient self-assembly into chiral supramolecular structures. For each of them, the aggregation modes has been investigated by absorbance and ECD spectroscopies in conditions of solution aggregation and on thin films, considering the effects of deposition technique (drop casting vs. spin coating) and post-deposition operations (solvent and thermal annealing). The effect of the structure of lateral π-conjugated units attached to the central DPP scaffold, as well as that of the position of the alkyl chiral group, has been assessed. ECD revealed superior capability, compared to absorbance spectroscopy, to provide information on the aggregation modes and to detect the possible co-existence of multiple aggregation pathways.

Funding: Scottish Funding Council (SFC/AN/08/020), Leverhulme Trust (RPG-2016-047), H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (838009, 859752), UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/P010482/1, EP/R00188X/1), Royal Society (SRF\R1\201089), Fonds De La Recherche Scientifique - FNRS (2.5020.11, F.4534.21), Università di Pisa (PRA 2020_21). We present the first example of a multi-resonant thermally activated delayed fluorescent (MR-TADF) extended helicene, Hel-DiDiKTa. This S-shaped double helicene exhibits sky-blue emission, a singlet-triplet energy gap, ΔEST, of 0.15 eV and narrow emission at a peak maximum of 473 nm with a full-width at half-maximum of 44 nm in toluene. The MR-TADF character is confirmed by the small degree of positive solvatochromism and temperature-dependent increase in intensity of the delayed emission. The chiroptical properties of the separated enantiomers are similar to other large helicenes with comparable dissymmetry values, but with the added benefit of MR-TADF. (P)-Hel-DiDiKTa is stable towards enantiomerization, with a Gibbs free energy of activation for enantiomerization (ΔGe‡) of 31± 2 kcal mol-1 at 298 K, a value similar to other reported double helicenes. (P)-Hel-DiDiKTa is also thermally stable, with a 5% weight loss at 399 oC revealed by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Thus, this study further strengthens the burgeoning area of chiral TADF emitters for use in cutting-edge optoelectronic and photocatalytic molecules and materials. Publisher PDF

Chirality is a structural property of molecules lacking mirror symmetry that has strong implications in diverse fields, ranging from life to materials sciences. Established spectroscopic methods that are sensitive to chirality, such as circular dichroism (CD), exhibit weak signal contributions on an achiral background. Helical dichroism (HD), which is based on the orbital angular momentum (OAM) of light, offers a new approach to probe molecular chirality, but it has never been demonstrated on disordered samples. Furthermore, in the optical domain the challenge lies in the need to transfer the OAM of the photon to an electron that is localized on an {\AA}-size orbital. Here, we overcome this challenge using hard X-rays with spiral Fresnel zone, which can induce an OAM. We present the first HD spectra of a disordered powder sample of enantiopure molecular complexes of [Fe(4,4'-diMebpy)3]2+ at the iron K-edge (7.1 keV) with OAM-carrying beams. The HD spectra exhibit the expected inversions of signs switching from a left to a right helical wave front or from an enantiomer to the other. The asymmetry ratios for the HD spectra are within one to five percent for OAM beams with topological charges of one and three. These results open a new window into the studies of molecular chirality and its interaction with the orbital angular momentum of light., Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures

Organic compounds showing circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) are at the forefront of novel applications and technologies. Here we show the synthesis and chiroptical properties of pyrene and perylene derivatives of inexpensive chiral scaffolds: isomannide and isosorbide. Low-intensity ECD spectra were obtained, suggesting the absence of chromophore interaction in the ground state, except in the case of isomannide bis-perylenecarboxylate, whose ECD spectrum showed a positive exciton couplet. All isomannide derivatives, with the only exception of the one containing a pyrenecarboxylate and a perylenecarboxylate, exhibited excimer CPL spectra, whereas isosorbide derivatives did not show any CPL. Isomannide derivatives bearing two pyrenecarboxylate or two pyrenylacetate groups showed positive CPL emission with dissymmetry factors up to 10

We report the synthesis, purification and characterization of chiral carbon nanodots starting from atropoisomeric precursors. The obtained atropoisomeric carbon nanodots are soluble in organic solvents and have good thermal stability, which are desirable features for technological applications. The synthetic protocol is robust, as it supports a number of variations in terms of molecular doping agents. Remarkably, the combination of axially chiral precursors and 1,4-benzoquinone as doping agent results in green-emissive carbon dots displaying circularly polarized luminescence. Dissymmetry factors of |3.5|×10−4 are obtained in solution, without the need of any additional element of chirality. Introducing axial chirality expands the strategies available to tailor the properties of carbon nanodots, paving the way for carbon nanoparticles that combine good processability in organic solvents with engineered advanced chiroptical properties.

Novel BN-doped compounds based on chiral, tetrasubstituted [2.2]paracyclophane and NBN-benzo[f,g]tetracene were synthesized by Sonogashira-Hagihara coupling. Conjugated ethynyl linkers allow electronic communication between the π-electron systems through-bond, whereas through-space interactions are provided by strong π-π overlap between the pairs of NBN-building blocks. Excellent optical and chiroptical properties in racemic and enantiopure conditions were measured, with molar absorption coefficients up to ϵ=2.04×10

International audience; We demonstrate the possibility to detect selectively the two enantiomers of a model [Ru(bpy) 3 ] 2+-based dye by circularly polarized-electrochemiluminescence (CP-ECL). This new nature of the ECL emission combines the chiral information intrinsic of CPL methods with an electrogeneration of the excited state. Thus, it opens the possibility to perform ECL-based bioassays or microscopy with efficient chiral dyes.

Iron-based spin-crossover (SCO) complexes hold tremendous promise as multifunctional switches in molecular devices. However, real-world technological applications require the excited high-spin (HS) state to be kinetically stable – a feature that has only been achieved at cryogenic temperatures in the light-induced excited spin-state trapping effect. Here we demonstrate HS state trapping by controlling the chiral configuration of FeII(4,4’-dimethyl-2,2’-bipyridine)3 in solution, associated for stereocontrol with enantiopure ∆- or Λ-TRISPHAT anions. We characterize the HS state relaxation using a newly developed ultrafast circular dichroism technique in combination with transient absorption and anisotropy measurements. We find that the decay of the HS state is accompanied by ultrafast changes of its optical activity, reflecting the coupling to a symmetry-breaking torsional twisting mode, contrary to the commonly assumed picture. Furthermore, we show that the diastereoselective ion-pairing with the enantiopure anions suppresses the vibrational population of the identified twisting mode, thereby achieving a four-fold extension of the HS lifetime. Transferred to the solid state, this novel strategy may thus significantly improve the kinetic stability of iron(II)-based magnetic switches at room temperature.

International audience; The controlled preparation of chiral emissive transition metal complexes is fundamental in the field of circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) active molecular materials. For this purpose, enantiopure Zn(II) complexes 1 and 2 based on a tetradentate salen ligand surrounded by [4]helicene moieties, together with their racemic counterpart 3, have been herein synthesized. Chirality is primarily brought about by chiral 1,2-cyclohexane-diamines. Alternatively, achiral complex 4 based on ortho-phenylene-diamine has been prepared as well. Single crystal X-ray diffraction analyses have been performed on helicenic intermediates 8 and 9 and complexes 1 and 4. Complexes 1 and 4 display the typical tetradentate O,N,N,O coordination around Zn(II) characteristic of salen ligands, and bear two [4]helicene moieties. The zinc complexes are luminescent in the visible range around 560 nm at room temperature in aerated solutions with the QY reaching ca. 15% for a luminescence lifetime of 5.5 ns. The optical activities of these complexes have been assessed by CD and CPL, and compared to DFT calculations.

International audience; Synthesis, electronic and structural properties of a chiral NHC bearing a N-bonded cationic [4]helicene moiety are reported. This ligand is used to construct Au(I), Au(III) and Rh(I) complexes exhibiting far-red (chir)optical properties regardless of the metal.

International audience; The electronic structure of a chiral Yb(III)-based complex is fully determined by taking advantage of experimental magnetic, luminescence, and chiroptical (NIR-ECD and CPL) characterizations in combination with ab initio wavefunction calculations. The combined use of these techniques allows determining with high resolution the electronic structure diagram as well as the nature of the different states involved in the magnetic and chiroptical properties of the investigated complex. The crystal-field picture deduced from spectroscopic measurements (absorption and emission) is used to reproduce the magnetic properties. Subsequently, advanced ab initio calculations demonstrate that global chiroptical spectra correspond to the sum of entangled transitions with similar or opposite polarizations.

Singlet fission (SF), i.e., the splitting of a high-energy exciton into two lower-energy triplet excitons, has the potential to increase the efficiency for harvesting spectrally broad light. The path from the photopopulated singlet state to free triplets is complicated by competing processes that decrease the overall SF efficiency. A detailed understanding of the whole cascade and the nature of the photoexcited singlet state is still a major challenge. Here, we introduce a pentacene dimer with a flexible crown ether spacer enabling a control of the interchromophore coupling upon solvent-induced self-aggregation as well as cation binding. The systematic change of solvent polarity and viscosity and excitation wavelength, as well as the available conformational phase space, allows us to draw a coherent picture of the whole SF cascade from the femtosecond to microsecond time scales. High coupling leads to ultrafast SF (

Chiral Eu

The chiral spin-flip luminophore [Cr(ddpd)2]3+ can be resolved into enantiopure material by chiral HPLC. The corresponding enantiomers show very high luminescence dissymmetry factors of up to ∣glum ∣≈ 0.093 in circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) measurements for the "ruby-like" phosphorescence transition 2E/2T1 → 4A2 in the near-IR region around λ ≈ 775 nm.

The systematic reactions of a family of tetradentate pyridyl/imine and quinolyl/imine racemic or enantiopure Schiff bases with Ni(NO3)(2) or Ni(ClO4)(2) in the presence of sodium azide yielded, as a function of the starting racemic, chiral or achiral base, a set of chiral, meso or achiral complexes. In all cases, the compounds consist of two Ni-II cations linked by a double azido bridge in its end-on coordination mode. All the dimers exhibit a mesocate supramolecular structure and one of them, the unprecedented mix of helicate and mesocate in 2:1 ratio. The transition from mesocate to helicate conformation has been reached by tuning the flexibility of the central spacers of the Schiff bases and the size of the substituents. Electronic circular dichroism (ECD) studies have been performed for two pairs of enantiomers and interpreted by means of DFT calculations. Susceptibility measurements show a ferromagnetic coupling between the Ni-II cations mediated by the end-on azido bridges.

To the best of our knowledge this is the first report on the application of induced circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) for sensing the binding of fluorescent dyes to double stranded DNA. Using Thiazole Orange (TO) and 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) as models, we show utility and limitations of CPL in DNA binding studies. The results obtained indicate that CPL can be used as a new chiroptical tool for this purpose, however, special attention while recording CPL data must be used, in order to exclude measurement artefacts caused by linear polarization components.

We report off-white circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) from supramolecular aggregates formed by a chiral carboxylic acid-functionalized naphthalene diimide. The self-assembly behaviour and the stability of the aggregates in solution were assessed by variable-temperature UV-Vis and electronic circular dichroism experiments. The observed 200 nm-wide emission band is unusual for a single chromophore and is a consequence of the supramolecular ordering due to a combination of π-stacking and H-bonding interactions, leading to excimer formation. High emission anisotropy factors glum, around |1-2| × 10-2, were observed over the whole spectrum in chlorinated/hydrocarbon solvent mixtures, as well as in thin films. These values are one order of magnitude higher than those of most chiral self-assembled fluorophores and other common small organic emitters.

Chiral Eu3+ -based systems are frequently studied via circularly polarized luminescence spectroscopy. The emission lifetimes of each circular polarization, however, are virtually always ignored, because in a homogeneous sample of emitters, there should be no difference between the two. However, we show that in less robust Eu3+ complex structures, as in the chiral complex Eu (facam)3 , a difference in the lifetimes of the two circularly polarized emission components arises due to heterogeneity of the complexes. In this case, each species within the sample could have different degrees of circularly polarized luminescence and decay rates at certain emission lines. The superposition of the emission components of the various chiral species leads to an overall difference in decay rate between the two circular polarizations. Such a difference is also shown for Eu3+ -doped chiral TbPO4 ·D2 O nanocrystals. We believe that this kind of measurement could be a unique tool for determining the homogeneity of a lanthanide-based chiral system, where other methods might fail in this task.

An increasing number of circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) molecular emitters has been developed in recent years and many of them are intended for applications in which high overall CPL efficiencies are required. In order to have a complete picture of the efficiency of a CPL emitter, dissymmetry factor (glum ) is not enough. In the following we propose a new quantity, named CPL brightness (BCPL ), which takes into account absorption extinction coefficient and quantum yield along with the glum factor. We calculated BCPL value for more than 180 compounds reported in the literature and we analyse data distribution for the main classes of CPL molecular emitters. This tool can be employed to put into context new CPL active compounds and to direct the choice of molecular systems for specific CPL applications.

In this chapter, examples of circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) stemming from intramolecularly formed excimers will be reviewed. Emission from excimers has peculiar photophysical properties with respect to fluorescence of regular monomers. In addition, if the fluorophoric couple forming the excimer in the excited state is mounted on a chiral scaffold, a strong CPL can be usually observed. Examples of chiral scaffolds include oligopeptides, macrocycles, binaphthyl, and diaminocyclohexane derivatives. CPL from excimers has mainly been observed from pyrenes but other molecules are also able to give rise to such phenomenon, e.g., perylenes and 1,8-naphthalene monoimide. Excimer CPL can provide important information about the conformation of a molecule in the excited state and how it evolves depending on the environment (e.g., solvent and temperature) or external stimuli (e.g., light irradiation and cation addition). Moreover, thanks to the peculiar photophysical nature of excimers, the degree of circular polarization associated with excimer emission is usually much larger than the one associated with the absorption (electronic circular dichroism, ECD) for the same molecule. This allows to study chiroptical emission properties of molecules which are ECD-silent (ground state cryptochirality). As a whole, excimer CPL is an interesting and useful strategy to develop organic molecular systems endowed with bright and highly polarized luminescence.

A series of chiral fluorescent helicene-BODIPY conjugates was prepared by the regioselective formylation of aza[4]helicene precursors and then an efficient one-pot two-step BODIPY synthesis (13 examples, 28-82%). Fused conjugates exhibit absorption and fluorescence properties (ΦF 30-45%) in the red visible domain, and a CPL signature could be measured at 605 nm (glum ±5 × 10-4). Photophysical and electronic properties were investigated and rationalized through first principles.

Strongly dissymmetric circularly polarised (CP) luminescence from small organic molecules could transform a range of technologies, such as display devices. However, highly dissymmetric emission is usually not possible with small organic molecules, which typically give dissymmetric factors of photoluminescence (g PL) less than 10−2. Here we describe an almost 103‐fold chiroptical amplification of a π‐extended superhelicene when embedded in an achiral conjugated polymer matrix. This combination increases the |g PL| of the superhelicene from approximately 3×10−4 in solution to 0.15 in a blend film in the solid‐state. We propose that the amplification arises not simply through a chiral environment effect, but instead due to electrodynamic coupling between the electric and magnetic transition dipoles of the polymer donor and superhelicene acceptor, and subsequent CP Förster resonance energy transfer. We show that this amplification effect holds across several achiral polymer hosts and thus represents a simple and versatile approach to enhance the g‐factors of small organic molecules., The amplification of circularly polarised (CP) luminescence of a small chiral molecule embedded within an achiral polymer matrix is demonstrated. This amplification (from |g PL|=0.0003 to 0.15) is observed in several achiral polymer hosts, due to electrodynamic coupling between the electric and magnetic transition dipoles of the donor (polymer) and acceptor (small molecule), which results in efficient CP Förster resonance energy transfer.

The first observation of circular polarization of electrochemiluminescence (ECL) from a purely organic derivative is reported. A bispyrene scaffold mounted on a constrained polyether macrocycle displaying intense excimer fluorescence and highly circularly-polarized (CP) photoluminescence has been selected for this purpose. The compound displays an ECL dissymmetry factor of about |8×10-3 |, which is in good agreement with the corresponding photoluminescence value. This observation is the first step towards the molecular engineering of tailored dyes that can act as both ECL and CP-ECL reporters for (bio)analysis by bringing a new level of information when dealing with chiral environments. Additionally, it provides an extra dimension to the ECL phenomenon and opens the way to chiral detection and discrimination.

Controlling circularly polarized (CP) emission is key for both fundamental understanding and applications in the field of chiral photonics and electronics. Here, a completely new way to achieve this goal is presented. A luminescent thin film, made from a chiral conjugated phenylene bis-thiophenylpropynone able to self-assemble into ordered structures, emits highly circularly polarized light with opposite handedness from its two opposite faces. Such emergent nonreciprocal behavior in CP emission, so far unprecedented, represents a fundamental advance, opening new opportunities in design, preparation, and applications of CP emitting materials.

Understanding structure–property relationships in multichromophoric molecular architectures is a crucial step in establishing new design principles in organic electronics as well as to fully understand how nature exploits solar energy. Here, we study the excited state dynamics of three bichromophores consisting of two perylene chromophores linked to three different crown-ether backbones, using stationary and ultrafast electronic spectroscopy combined with molecular dynamics simulations. The conformational space available to the bichromophores depends on the structure and geometry of the crown-ether and can be significantly changed upon cation binding, strongly affecting the excited-state dynamics. We show that, depending on the conformational restrictions and the local environment, the nature of the excited state varies greatly, going from an excimer to a symmetry-broken charge separated state. These results can be rationalised in terms of a structure–property relationship that includes the effect of the local environment., Varying the structure of perylene-based dimers allows tuning the excited state from an excimer to a charge-separated state.

The measurement of chirality and its temporal evolution are crucial for the understanding of a large range of biological functions and chemical reactions. Steady-state circular dichroism (CD) is a standard analytical tool for measuring chirality in chemistry and biology. Nevertheless, its push into the ultrafast time domain and in the deep-ultraviolet has remained a challenge, with only some isolated reports of subnanosecond CD. Here, we present a broadband time-resolved CD spectrometer in the deep ultraviolet (UV) spectral range with femtosecond time resolution. The setup employs a photo-elastic modulator to achieve shot-to-shot polarization switching of a 20 kHz pulse train of broadband femtosecond deep-UV pulses (250-370 nm). The resulting sequence of alternating left- and right-circularly polarized probe pulses is employed in a pump-probe scheme with shot-to-shot dispersive detection and thus allows for the acquisition of broadband CD spectra of ground- and excited-state species. Through polarization scrambling of the probe pulses prior to detection, artifact-free static and transient CD spectra of enantiopure [Ru(bpy)(3)](2+) are successfully recorded with a sensitivity of

The reaction of LnCl3·6H2O with (S)-(+)-2-(6-methoxy-2-naphthyl)propionic acid (S-HL), best known as naproxen, and 1,10-phenanthroline (phen) in EtOH allows the isolation of dinuclear chiral compounds S-1-4 of the formula [Ln2(S-L)6(phen)2]·3DMF·H2O [Ln(III) = Eu (1), Gd (2), Tb (3) and Dy (4)]. The use of the R-enantiomeric species of the HL ligand led to complexes R-1-4 with the formula [Ln2(R-L)6(phen)2]·3DMF·H2O. Compounds R- and S-1, 3 and 4 show strong sensitized metal-centred luminescence in the visible region. Moreover, Dy(III) complexes R- and S-4 display field-induced singlemolecule magnet (SMM) behaviour. For chiral and emissive compounds circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) measurements have also been performed.

A series of helical tetracenes and pentacenes was synthesized from cationic [6] and [4]helicene precursors. These colorful acenes fluoresce in the far red region. While [4]helicene-based pentacenes exhibit chiroptical properties mainly in the UV region, [6]helicene-derived tetracenes show enhanced ECD in the visible range, in addition to clear CPL responses. This difference is rationalized using first principles., Helical polyaza acenes, made from cationic [4] and [6]helicenes, display bright fluorescence. Only [6]helicene-derived tetracenes show enhanced ECD and CPL responses in the visible range as rationalized from first principles.

We report a rare example of near infrared circularly polarized luminescence (NIR-CPL) in the 920-1050 nm region associated with the f-f transitions of Yb diketonate complexes bearing chiral ancillary ligands. Developing NIR-CPL emitters may have implications from CPL-based (bio)-assays to chiral optoelectronics.

A series of chiral fluorescent macrocycles display a remarkable combination of both +/– ECD and strong on/off CPL reversible switching upon cation binding and displacement., Straightforward synthesis and resolution of a series of chiral fluorescent macrocycles are presented, together with their electronic circular dichroism (ECD), strong excimer fluorescence (EF, λ 300 to 650 nm) and allied highly circularly polarized luminescence (CPL, glum up to 1.7 × 10–2). The ECD, EF and CPL responses are strongly affected by the presence of metal ions (Na+, Ba2+) thanks to deep conformational changes. While ECD signals can be almost completely reversibly inverted upon the complexation/decomplexation of metal ions in a typical binary response, CPL signals are reversibly quenched concomitantly. The designed macrocycles display thus a remarkable combination of both +/– ECD and on/off CPL reversible switching.