Noncovalent Interaction Guided Precise Photoluminescence Regulation of Gold Nanoclusters in Both Isolate Species and Aggregate States.

Designing luminophores bright in both isolate species and aggregate states is of great importance in many emerging cutting-edge applications. However, the conventional luminophores either emit in isolate species but quench in aggregate state or emit in aggregate state but darken in isolate species. Here we demonstrate that the precise regulation of noncovalent interactions can realize luminophores bright in both isolate species and aggregate states. It is firstly discovered that the intra-cluster interaction enhances the emission of atomically precise Au 25 (pMBA) 18 (pMBA=4-mercaptobenzoic acid), a nanoscale luminophore, while the inter-cluster interaction quenches the emission. The emission enhancing strategies are then well-designed by both introducing exogenous substances to block inter-cluster interaction and surface manipulation of Au 25 (pMBA) 18 at the molecular level to enhance intra-cluster interaction, opening new possibilities to controllably enhance the luminophore's photoluminescence in both isolate species and aggregate states in different phases including aqueous solution, solid state and organic solvents.