Fully Reversible and Super-Fast Photo-Induced Morphological Transformation of Nanofilms for High-Performance UV Detection and Light-Driven Actuators

Xiangquan Liu, Jiahui Hu, Jinglun Yang, Lingya Peng, Jiaqi Tang, Xiaohui Wang, Rongrong Huang, Jianfei Liu, Kaiqiang Liu, Tingyi Wang, Xiaoyan Liu*, Liping Ding*, Yu Fang*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

5 Citations (Scopus)
23 Downloads (CityUHK Scholars)

Abstract

Flexible and highly ultraviolet (UV) sensitive materials garner considerable attention in wearable devices, adaptive sensors, and light-driven actuators. Herein, a type of nanofilms with unprecedented fully reversible UV responsiveness are successfully constructed. Building upon this discovery, a new system for ultra-fast, sensitive, and reliable UV detection is developed. The system operates by monitoring the displacement of photoinduced macroscopic motions of the nanofilms based composite membranes. The system exhibits exceptional responsiveness to UV light at 375 nm, achieving remarkable response and recovery times of < 0.3 s. Furthermore, it boasts a wide detection range from 2.85 µW cm−2 to 8.30 mW cm−2, along with robust durability. Qualitative UV sensing is accomplished by observing the shape changes of the composite membranes. Moreover, the composite membrane can serve as sunlight-responsive actuators for artificial flowers and smart switches in practical scenarios. The photo-induced motion is ascribed to the cis–trans isomerization of the acylhydrazone bonds, and the rapid and fully reversible shape transformation is supposed to be a synergistic result of the instability of the cis-isomers acylhydrazone bonds and the rebounding property of the networked nanofilms. These findings present a novel strategy for both quantitative and qualitative UV detection. © 2024 The Authors. Advanced Science published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.
Original languageEnglish
Article number2307165
JournalAdvanced Science
Volume11
Issue number12
Online published15 Jan 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 27 Mar 2024

Research Keywords

  • cis–trans isomerization
  • dynamic condensation
  • nanofilms
  • photo-induced motion
  • UV detection

Publisher's Copyright Statement

  • This full text is made available under CC-BY 4.0. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Fully Reversible and Super-Fast Photo-Induced Morphological Transformation of Nanofilms for High-Performance UV Detection and Light-Driven Actuators'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this