Aggregation-induced enhanced emission and device applications of acrylonitrile derivatives

Abstract

This study presents a comprehensive exploration of acrylonitrile derivatives 4(a-n) by integrating their structural, electronic, photophysical, and device-level characteristics. Building on our previous findings that demonstrated the suitability of acrylonitrile-based systems for optoelectronic applications, the present work extends the investigation to a wider series to elucidate structure-property-device correlations. The molecules adopt semi-planar conjugated architectures linking hydroxy-substituted phenyl rings through alpha,beta-unsaturated-C--- N linkages, promoting extended it-electron delocalization and efficient excited-state interactions.Frontier molecular orbital analysis and global reactivity parameters (HOMO, LUMO, omega, mu, eta) reveal that electron-withdrawing substituents, especially-CF3 groups, enhance molecular electrophilicity and polarization, whereas electron-donating substituents favor nucleophilic regions, consistent with molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) distributions.Photophysical investigations uncover prominent aggregation-induced emission (AIE) and aggregation-induced enhanced emission (AIEE) effects, displaying maximal radiative efficiency at specific DMSO-water compositions. Leveraging these luminescent properties, a functional p-Si/(4e)/Al Schottky diode was fabricated, exhibiting rectifying characteristics and a logarithmic enhancement in forward current under illumination.Overall, the results highlight that the synergistic combination of tunable electronic structure, strong excited-state emission, and device compatibility positions these acrylonitrile derivatives as promising candidates for advanced optoelectronic and photovoltaic applications.