Aggregation-induced emission (AIE) has attracted considerable attention in designing high-performance emitters for both photoluminescence (PL) and electrochemiluminescence (ECL). In this study, to prepare AIE-active polymer dots (Pdots) with efficient PL and ECL emission, we demonstrate a molecular engineering strategy by tuning the side chain of fluorenyl–tetraphenylethylene polymers from ester to carboxyl groups. By introducing the carboxyl group at a moderate fraction, significant PL enhancement was achieved, benefiting from the more quantities and the better compactness of the luminophores inside the Pdots. The ECL emission of these carboxylic Pdots has also been promoted to a highest quantum yield (Φ_ECL) of 54.7%, making it a promising ECL emitter for visual detection for bioanalysis. Unlike the traditional oxidative–reductive mechanism, the ECL of carboxylic Pdots exhibited a unique low-oxidation-potential (LOP) route that originated from the enhanced proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) within the carboxylic nanoparticles.

中文翻译：

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电化学发光聚合物点的分子工程

聚集诱导发射（AIE）在设计用于光致发光（PL）和电化学发光（ECL）的高性能发射器方面引起了相当大的关注。在这项研究中，为了制备具有高效 PL 和 ECL 发射的 AIE 活性聚合物点（Pdots），我们通过将芴基-四苯基乙烯聚合物的侧链从酯基团调整为羧基基团来展示一种分子工程策略。通过以中等比例引入羧基，实现了显着的 PL​​ 增强，这得益于 Pdots 内发光体的更多数量和更好的紧凑性。这些羧酸 Pdots 的 ECL 发射也被提升到最高的量子产率 (Φ _ECL) 的 54.7%，使其成为用于生物分析视觉检测的有前途的 ECL 发射器。与传统的氧化还原机制不同，羧基 Pdots 的 ECL 表现出独特的低氧化电位 (LOP) 途径，该途径源于羧基纳米颗粒内增强的质子耦合电子转移 (PCET)。