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A simple and versatile strategy is established to facilitate molecular recognition by extending electron catalysis for use in supramolecular non-covalent chemistry.

Quantum teleportation moves the quantum state of a system between physical locations without losing its coherence, an essential criterion for emerging quantum information applications. Now, electron-spin-state teleportation in covalent organic electron donor–acceptor–stable radical molecules is demonstrated using entangled electron spins produced by photo-induced electron transfer.

Singlet fission is an efficient way to generate excitons but is rarely responsive to external stimuli. Here the authors design a linked tetracene dimer where acid/base interactions can control singlet fission to enable a molecular IMPLICATION logic gate.

Catenanes can exhibit chirality even when their component rings are achiral. Here an isostructural desymmetrization strategy is developed, demonstrating that two achiral rings, each featuring two mirror planes and a two-fold axis of symmetry, can form a catenane with tuneable mechanical chirality.

The development of complex molecular machinery requires a detailed appreciation of the factors that control energy pathways through the nanoscale scaffold. Here, the authors demonstrate that hetero-rotaxanes can be employed to create assemblies of different redox and photo-active components that enable selective tuning of energy transfer pathways.

Selective chemical upcycling of polyolefin mixtures remains challenging due to the structural similarity of their backbones. Now it has been shown that a single-site nickel catalyst can preferentially and efficiently cleave branched C–C bonds, enabling the hydrogenolytic separation of isotactic polypropylene from mixtures containing both isotactic polypropylene and polyethylene.

Singlet fission is an important process occurring in solar cells, however the mechanism is not well understood. Here the authors reveal intermediates during singlet fission of a non-conjugated pentacene dimer, developing a single kinetic model to describe the data over seven temporal orders of magnitude at room and cryogenic temperatures.

Self-assembled ribbons of perylene amphiphiles have been shown to crystallize in the presence of a nickel-based hydrogen production catalyst, allowing efficient electronic coupling between the perylene chromophores. This hydrogel material photocatalyses the production of H₂, and can be shaped and placed on surfaces for incorporation into devices.

Here the authors induce asymmetric transmission in planar Fabry–Pérot microcavities by embedding organic thin films exhibiting apparent circular dichroism (ACD), an optical phenomenon based on 2D chirality.

The discovery of intermediate high-spin multiexciton states with surprisingly long lifetimes provides new opportunities for engineering singlet fission, which may also provide an intriguing route to quantum information and spintronic applications.

Molecular π-stacked chromophores are promising photonic materials, but much of our understanding is limited to covalent dimers. Now it has been shown that, in a slip-stacked perylenediimide trimer, coherent vibronic coupling to high-frequency modes facilitates ultrafast state mixing between the Frenkel exciton and charge-transfer states, which then collapses by solvent fluctuations and low-frequency vibronic coupling, resulting in ultrafast symmetry-breaking charge separation.

Photosynthetic systems regulate light harvesting via structural and electronic control of antenna proteins. Here, the authors report a light-harvesting antenna/reaction centre mimic that can be allosterically regulated using mild and redox-inactive inputs, via a coordination framework with hemilabile ligands.

Charge transfer in DNA is of fundamental interest in chemistry and biochemistry and has possible applications in nano-electronics. Now it has been shown, through a combined experimental and theoretical study, that the migration of positive charges through low-lying orbitals of nucleobases (deep-hole transfer) leads to charge transfer that is faster than previously considered transport regimes.

The construction and operation of interlocked molecular machines often rely on the mutual recognition of different building blocks through a range of non-covalent interactions. Researchers have now shown that the versatility of bipyridinium systems can be increased by taking advantage of the complexes formed between their radical cations; with this approach they have been able to make electrochemically switchable bi- and tristable rotaxanes.

Singlet fission in assemblies of molecular chromophores offers a promising route to improving solar cell efficiencies, but its mechanism is not fully understood. Now, a series of covalently bound π-stacked terrylenediimide dimers have been studied to elucidate the role of interchromophore charge-transfer states in the mechanism of singlet fission.

Using self-assembly to generate hydrogen-bonded organic networks is an underexplored method when preparing functional framework materials. Now, taking cue from DNA, bio-inspired G-quadruplexes are used as both intrinsic electron donors and hydrogen-bonding linkers to assemble rylene diimide acceptors. The resulting rectangular grids form layered crystalline frameworks, in which photoexcitation produces long-lived mobile charge carriers.

Two-dimensional arrays of plasmonic nanoparticles coupled with a gain medium can behave as a surface-emitting laser with near-zero group velocity and picosecond dynamics.

Although pyrene-containing molecules have been studied for their optical properties, the outcome of their incorporation into mechanically interlocked structures remains underexplored. Here, the authors install pyrene units into homo[2]catenanes and investigate the formation of long-lived triplet states, which can be exploited for photocatalysis.

Re-absorption losses in luminescent solar concentrators cause concentration performances to be around ten times less than the ideal value. Researchers have now reduced re-absorption by forcing the emission in one region to be off-resonant with the other regions, achieving a two-fold enhancement in concentration performance over conventional devices.

Two-photon excited near-infrared fluorescence materials have garnered considerable attention because of their superior optical properties compared with other optical materials. Here, the authors use a convenient and efficient supramolecular approach to synthesize a two-photon excited near-infrared emissive co-crystalline material.

Tetrathiafulvalene (TTF)-based [3]catenanes are shown to display multiple stable redox states dominated by TTF···TTF radical dimer interactions occurring within the cavity of what is essentially a ‘molecular flask’. These stabilizing interactions are found to be the basis of a novel recognition motif that can be employed to drive molecular switching under redox control.

Detection and spectroscopic measurements of gamma-ray used to rely on expensive materials such as CdZnTe crystals. Here He et al. develop a melt method to grow large size CsPbBr₃ perovskite crystals and the devices achieve low cost, high energy resolving capabilities and stability.

Spins defined in single-walled carbon nanotubes promise ultra-long spin relaxation times, but qubit implementations require confinement of isolated spins. Here the authors report highly confined long-lived electron spins in chemically functionalized nanotubes and demonstrate their coherent control.

Lead trihalide perovskites are notable for their excellent optoelectronic properties and uncommon phase behavior. Here, Kirschner et al. show that cesium lead bromide nanocrystals experience a reversible orthorhombic-to-cubic phase transition at moderate excitation fluences and become amorphous at higher fluences.

Hierarchical non-intertwined ring-in-ring complexes are intriguing but challenging supramolecular targets. Here, the authors describe a box-in-box assembly based on radical-pairing interactions between two rigid diradical dicationic cyclophanes; the inner box can further accommodate guests to form Russian doll-like assemblies.

Molecular design and synthesis, from small molecules to supramolecular assemblies, combined with new spectroscopic probes of quantum coherence and theoretical modelling, offer a broad range of possibilities to realize practical quantum information science applications in computing, communications and sensing.