Luminescent aggregates of a starburst silole-triphenylamine adduct for sensitive explosive detection

摘要

A starburst luminogen (THPSTPA) consisting of a triphenylamine core and 1,1,2,3,4,5-hexaphenylsilole peripheries is designed and synthesized. Whereas it is weakly luminescent when molecularly dissolved in good solvent, it becomes highly emissive when aggregated in poor solvent, exhibiting a novel phenomenon of aggregation-induced emission (AIE). THPSTPA is morphologically and thermally stable, showing high glass transition and thermal degradation temperatures at 150 and 303 ℃, respectively. The emission of its aggregates can be quenched exponentially by picric acid with a quenching constant up to ~7.0 x 10~4 L mol~(-1), suggesting that it can work as a sensitive chemosensor for explosive detection.