An ultra-simple construction strategy for uncommon 3,4-diaryl-modified maleimide luminophores and their unique aggregation-induced asymmetric effect (AIAE) on conformation

A special photo-activated ring-expansion reaction was applied to construct uncommon 3,4-diaryl-substituted maleimide (MAI) derivatives as novel luminescent materials for organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). The three derivatives exhibit significant asymmetric substitution conformations in the aggregated state and different electroluminescence properties despite their symmetric chemical structures.