Synergetic Spin Crossover and Fluorescence in One‐Dimensional Hybrid Complexes

Hybrid materials integrated with a variety of physical properties, such as spin crossover (SCO) and fluorescence, may show synergetic effects that find applications in many fields. Herein we demonstrate a promising post‐synthetic approach to achieve such materials by grafting fluorophores (1‐pyrenecarboxaldehyde and Rhodamine B) on one‐dimensional SCO Fe^II structures. The resulting hybrid materials display expected one‐step SCO behavior and fluorescent properties, in particular showing a coupling between the transition temperature of SCO and the temperature where the fluorescent intensity reverses. Consequently, synergetic effect between SCO and fluorescence is incorporated into materials despite different fluorophores. This study provides an effective strategy for the design and development of novel magnetic and optical materials.     

Redox‐Neutral α‐Allylation of Amines by Combining Palladium Catalysis and Visible‐Light Photoredox Catalysis

An unprecedented α‐allylation of amines was achieved by combining palladium catalysis and visible‐light photoredox catalysis. In this dual catalysis process, the catalytic generation of allyl radical from the corresponding π‐allylpalladium intermediate was achieved without additional metal reducing reagents (redox‐neutral). Various allylation products of amines were obtained in high yields through radical cross‐coupling under mild reaction conditions. Moreover, the transformation was applied to the formal synthesis of 8‐oxoprotoberberine derivatives which show potential anticancer properties.     

Identification of antibacterial and antioxidant constituents of the essential oils of Cynanchum chinense and Ligustrum compactum

The aim of this research was to determine the chemical composition, antioxidant and antibacterial properties of the essential oils from Cynanchum chinense and Ligustrum compactum and isolation of antioxidant and antibacterial constituents from the essential oils. Thirty-eight components were identified in essential oils. Based on bioactivity-guided fractionation, guaiacol, linalool and 2-phenylethanol were isolated and identified as active constituents. Both L. compactum flower oil and 2-phenylethanol showed high antibacterial performance, with inhibition zone from 22.8 ± 0.8 to 11.9 ± 2.0 mm at highest concentration, and minimum inhibitory concentration values ranging from 0.25% to 1%. In both DPPH and ABTS assay, the active constituent guaiacol (IC₅₀ = 4.15 ± 0.72 and 9.12 ± 0.98 μg mL^? 1, respectively) exhibited high antioxidant activity, and the oils showed moderate antioxidant activity. These results indicate potential efficacy of active constituents and essential oils of L. compactum and C. chinense to control food-borne pathogenic and spoilage bacteria.     

Expeditious Synthesis of Enantiopure,Orthogonally Protected Bis‐α‐Amino Acids (OPBAAs) and their Use in a Study of Nod1 Stimulation

A convenient approach towards the synthesis of orthogonally protected chiral bis‐α‐amino acids (OPBAAs) is described. The key transformations include: (1) a highly stereoselective conjugation (alkylation) of the Schöllkopf bis‐lactim ethers and oxazolidinyl alkyl halides to build a backbone skeleton; and (2) our orthogonal protection strategy. A series of enantiopure OPBAAs bearing a variety of alkyl chain as a spacer; two stereogenic centers; and three protecting groups were prepared as examples. These versatile molecules were applied to the synthesis of biologically interesting di‐ or tri‐peptide analogues, including chiral iE‐meso‐DAP and A‐iE‐meso‐DAP, for the study of Nod1 activation in the innate immune response.     

A Nanoscale Multiresponsive Luminescent Sensor Based on a Terbium(III) Metal–Organic Framework

A nanoscale terbium‐containing metal–organic framework ( nTbL ), with a layer‐like structure and [H₂NMe₂]⁺ cations located in the framework channels, was synthesized under hydrothermal conditions. The structure of the as‐prepared sample was systematically confirmed by powder XRD and elemental analysis; the morphology was characterized by field‐emission SEM and TEM. The photoluminescence studies revealed that rod‐like nTbL exhibited bright‐green emission, corresponding to ⁵D₄→⁷F_J (J=6–3) transitions of the Tb³⁺ ion under excitation. Further sensing measurements revealed that as‐prepared nTbL could be utilized as a multiresponsive luminescent sensor, which showed significant and exclusive detection ability for Fe³⁺ ions and phenylmethanol. These results highlight the practical applications of lanthanide‐containing metal–organic frameworks as fluorescent probes.     

A two‐dimensional cadmium(II) coordination polymer based on 1‐cyanomethyl‐4‐aza‐1‐azoniabicyclo[2.2.2]octane and thiocyanate ligands

A cadmium–thiocyanate complex, poly[(1‐cyanomethyl‐4‐aza‐1‐azoniabicyclo[2.2.2]octane‐κ⁴N)octakis‐μ₂‐thiocyanato‐κ⁸N:S;κ⁸S:N‐tricadmium(II)], [Cd₃(C₈H₁₄N₃)₂(NCS)₈]_n, was synthesized by the reaction of 1‐cyanomethyl‐4‐aza‐1‐azoniabicyclo[2.2.2]octane chloride, cadmium nitrate tetrahydrate and potassium thiocyanide in aqueous solution. In the crystal structure, there are two independent types of Cd^II cation (one on a centre of inversion and one in a general position) and both are in distorted octahedral coordination environments, coordinated by N and S atoms from different ligands. Neighbouring Cd^II cations are linked together by thiocyanate bridges to form a two‐dimensional network. Hydrogen‐bonding interactions are involved in the formation of a three‐dimensional supramolecular network.     

Active dielectric metasurface based on phase‐change medium

We propose all‐dielectric metasurfaces that can be actively re‐configured using the phase‐change material Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (GST) alloy. With selectively controlled phase transitions on the composing GST elements, metasurfaces can be tailored to exhibit varied functionalities. Using phase‐change GST rod as the basic building block, we have modelled metamolecules with tunable optical response when phase change occurs on select constituent GST rods. Tunable gradient metasurfaces can be realized with variable supercell period consisting of different patterns of the GST rods in their amorphous and crystalline states. Simulation results indicate a range of functions can be delivered, including multilevel signal modulating, near‐field coupling of GST rods, and anomalous reflection angle controlling. This work opens up a new space in exploring active meta‐devices with broader applications that cannot be achieved in their passive counterparts with permanent properties once fabricated.

     

Plasmonic nano‐slits assisted polarization selective detour phase meta‐hologram

Traditional detour‐phase hologram is a powerful optical device for manipulating phase and amplitude of light, but it is usually not sensitive to the polarization of light. By introducing the light‐metasurface interaction mechanism to the traditional detour phase hologram, we design a novel plasmonic nano‐slits assisted polarization selective detour phase meta‐hologram, which has attractive advantages of polarization multiplexing ability, broadband response, and ultra‐compact size. The meta‐hologram relies on the dislocations of plasmonic slits to achieve arbitrary phase distributions, showing strong polarization selectivity to incident light due to the plasmonic response of deep‐subwavelength slits. To verify its polarization sensitive and broadband responses, we experimentally demonstrate two holographic patterns of an optical vortex and an Airy beam at p‐ and s‐polarized light with wavelengths of 532nm, 633nm and 780nm, respectively. Furthermore, we realize an application example of the meta‐hologram as a polarization multiplexed photonic device for multi‐channel optical angular momentum (OAM) generation and detection. Such meta‐holograms could find widespread applications in photonics, such as chip‐level beam shaping and high‐capacity OAM communication.