Extended Data Fig. 1: Gel formation.

(a) A picture of gel samples of 1·2Br obtained with water:ethanol ratio 5:5 without guest molecules (Gel), with incorporated azobenzene (Gel@Azo), porphyrin (Gel@TCPP) and both (Gel@TCPP@Azo). The scale bar represents 1 cm. Gel samples were always prepared by addition of MilliQ water to an ethanolic solution of 1·2Br, giving a final amphiphile concentration of 8 mM. For TCPP-containing gels, aqueous solutions of the TCPP sodium salt were prepared by dispersing the desired amount of solid TCPP in water followed by the addition of 4 equivalents of sodium hydroxide (from a 0.1 M stock solution). For Azo-containing gels, an ethanolic solution of 4-(phenylazo)benzoic acid (Azo)was premixed with 1·2Br, and the equimolar equivalent of sodium hydroxide was added in water in order to incorporate the Azo as its sodium salt. The final concentration of TCPP and Azo within the gels was always 60 μM and 2 mM, respectively. (b) Gelation time of the samples at room temperature (approximately 22 °C) obtained with solvent ratio 5:5 (blue bars) and 7:3 (red bars).