The integration of photochromism and photomagnetism is of great significance for developing photo-responsive multifunctional materials. Herein, we successfully synthesized four cyanido-bridged bimetal...

In this latest instalment of Future Chronicles, an imagined history of future inventions, Rowan Hooper reveals how invisibility cloaks could become mainstream

N-Alkyl imines are prevalent in dynamic-covalent chemistry and self-assembled structures, yet their E/Z photochromism is often overlooked due to the high-energy light required for isomerization. Here, we present a simple strategy to enhance their photoswitching properties, achieving switching wavelengths and photostationary state distributions comparable to azobenzene. Moreover, we demonstrate that these N-alkyl imines undergo photoisomerization in the condensed phase and exhibit isomer-dependent fluorescence. We anticipate that this study will inspire the design of photoresponsive architectures that operate directly at the dynamic-covalent bond, eliminating the need for dedicated photoswitchable motifs.

Photochromic molecules reversibly change their colour upon exposure to light. The increasing need for smart materials in the real world, coupled with progress in synthetic chemistry, fast spectroscopi...

Treatment of 1-amino-1,2,3-triazole with sodium dichloroisocyanurate led to isolation of 1,1′-azobis-1,2,3-triazole, which was well characterized. Its structure was determined by X-ray crystallographi...