Professor Robert Pal's Outputs (91)

Two‐photon excitation of bright diaza[4]helicenes for isotropic and circularly polarized emission (2025)
Journal Article
Fabri, B., De Rosa, D. F., Black, D. J., Mucci, R., Krimovs, A., Pal, R., & Lacour, J. (2025). Two‐photon excitation of bright diaza[4]helicenes for isotropic and circularly polarized emission. Chemistry: A European Journal, 31(32), Article e202501212. https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.202501212

Helicenes are chiral organic dyes that are attracting growing attention due to the high tunability of their (chir)optical and electronic properties. In this work, a series of functionalized cationic diaza[4]helicenes based on dimethoxyquinacridinium... Read More about Two‐photon excitation of bright diaza[4]helicenes for isotropic and circularly polarized emission.

A switch-on luminescent europium(III) probe for selective and time-resolved detection of adenosine diphosphate (ADP) (2025)
Journal Article
Bodman, S. E., Stachelek, P., Rehman, U., Plasser, F., Pal, R., & Butler, S. J. (online). A switch-on luminescent europium(III) probe for selective and time-resolved detection of adenosine diphosphate (ADP). Chemical Science, https://doi.org/10.1039/d4sc07188c

Adenosine diphosphate (ADP) is a key product of two essential classes of biological reactions, catalysed by ATPases and kinases. This makes ADP a highly appealing target for supramolecular detection. However, doing so selectively is exceedingly diffi... Read More about A switch-on luminescent europium(III) probe for selective and time-resolved detection of adenosine diphosphate (ADP).

A Bis‐Perylene Diimide Macrocycle Chiroptical Switch (2025)
Journal Article
Hartmann, D., Penty, S. E., Zwijnenburg, M. A., Pal, R., & Barendt, T. A. (2025). A Bis‐Perylene Diimide Macrocycle Chiroptical Switch. Angewandte Chemie, 64(15), Article e202501122. https://doi.org/10.1002/ange.202501122

Helical assemblies of organic dyes are ubiquitous chiral organic materials, with valuable properties including chiroptical switching due to the dynamic nature of supramolecular chirality. Herein, we report a novel chiral bis‐perylene diimide macrocyc... Read More about A Bis‐Perylene Diimide Macrocycle Chiroptical Switch.

Autoclave reactor synthesis of upconversion nanoparticles, unreported variables, and safety considerations (2025)
Journal Article
McGonigle, R., Glasgow, J., Houston, C., Cameron, I., Homann, C., Black, D. J., Pal, R., & MacKenzie, L. E. (2025). Autoclave reactor synthesis of upconversion nanoparticles, unreported variables, and safety considerations. Communications Chemistry, 8, Article 36. https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-025-01415-3

Autoclave reactors are widely used across chemical and biological sciences, including for the synthesis of upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) and other nanomaterials. Yet, the details of how autoclave reactors are used in such synthesis are rarely re... Read More about Autoclave reactor synthesis of upconversion nanoparticles, unreported variables, and safety considerations.

Self-assembling Depsipeptides on Aggregation-Induced Emission Luminogens: A New Way to Create Programmable Nanovesicles and Soft Nanocarriers. (2025)
Journal Article
Hernando-Muñoz, C., Revilla-Cuesta, A., Abajo-Cuadrado, I., Andreini, C., Torroba, T., Busto, N., Fernández, D., Perdomo, G., Acosta, G., Royo, M., Gutierrez Reguera, J., Spinello, A., Barone, G., Black, D., & Pal, R. (2025). Self-assembling Depsipeptides on Aggregation-Induced Emission Luminogens: A New Way to Create Programmable Nanovesicles and Soft Nanocarriers. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 17(6), 8751-10192. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.4c19123

We introduce the proof of concept of a new methodology to produce robust hollow nanovesicles stable in water or mixtures of water and organic solvents. The bottom-up produced nanovesicles are formed by the self-assembly of depsipeptide chains of natu... Read More about Self-assembling Depsipeptides on Aggregation-Induced Emission Luminogens: A New Way to Create Programmable Nanovesicles and Soft Nanocarriers..

Circularly Polarized Luminescence Bioimaging Using Chiral BODIPYs: A Model Scaffold for Advancing Unprecedented CPL Microscopy Using Small Full-Organic Probes. (2024)
Journal Article
Stachelek, P., Serrano-Buitrago, S., Maroto, B. L., Pal, R., & de la Moya, S. (2024). Circularly Polarized Luminescence Bioimaging Using Chiral BODIPYs: A Model Scaffold for Advancing Unprecedented CPL Microscopy Using Small Full-Organic Probes. ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, 16(49), https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.4c14127

Unprecedented circularly polarized luminescence bioimaging (CPL-bioimaging) of live cells using small full-organic probes is first reported. These highly biocompatible and adaptable probes are pivotal to advance emerging CPL Laser-Scanning Confocal M... Read More about Circularly Polarized Luminescence Bioimaging Using Chiral BODIPYs: A Model Scaffold for Advancing Unprecedented CPL Microscopy Using Small Full-Organic Probes..

Exerting control of self-assembly pathways via morphological switching and patterning in amino-acid-based benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamide conjugates (2024)
Journal Article
Savyasachi, A. J., Kotova, O., Luis, E. T., Lynes, A. D., Mills, S., Bright, S. A., McManus, G. J., Möbius, M. E., Williams, D. C., Pal, R., Boland, J. J., & Gunnlaugsson, T. (2025). Exerting control of self-assembly pathways via morphological switching and patterning in amino-acid-based benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamide conjugates. Chem, 11(2), Article 102321. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chempr.2024.09.020

Small structural changes to benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamide (BTA) dictate its self-assembly behavior and morphological outcome. Functionalization with an α-amino acid close to the BTA core, which also possesses a terminal terpyridine (tpy) unit, led to... Read More about Exerting control of self-assembly pathways via morphological switching and patterning in amino-acid-based benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamide conjugates.

Ligand Chirality Transfer from Solution State to the Crystalline Self‐Assemblies in Circularly Polarized Luminescence (CPL) Active Lanthanide Systems (2024)
Journal Article
Caffrey, D. F., Gorai, T., Rawson, B., Martínez‐Calvo, M., Kitchen, J. A., Murray, N. S., …Gunnlaugsson, T. (2024). Ligand Chirality Transfer from Solution State to the Crystalline Self‐Assemblies in Circularly Polarized Luminescence (CPL) Active Lanthanide Systems. Advanced Science, 11(18), Article 2307448. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202307448

The synthesis of a family of chiral and enantiomerically pure pyridyl‐diamide (pda) ligands that upon complexation with europium [Eu(CF3SO3)3] result in chiral complexes with metal centered luminescence is reported; the sets of enantiomers giving ris... Read More about Ligand Chirality Transfer from Solution State to the Crystalline Self‐Assemblies in Circularly Polarized Luminescence (CPL) Active Lanthanide Systems.

A Chirally Locked Bis-perylene Diimide Macrocycle: Consequences for Chiral Self-Assembly and Circularly Polarized Luminescence (2024)
Journal Article
Penty, S. E., Orton, G. R., Black, D., Pal, R., Zwijnenburg, M. A., & Barendt, T. A. (2024). A Chirally Locked Bis-perylene Diimide Macrocycle: Consequences for Chiral Self-Assembly and Circularly Polarized Luminescence. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 146(8), 5470-5479. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.3c13191

Macrocycles containing chiral organic dyes are highly valuable for the development of supramolecular circularly polarized luminescent (CPL) materials, where a preorganized chiral framework is conducive to directing π–π self-assembly and delivering a... Read More about A Chirally Locked Bis-perylene Diimide Macrocycle: Consequences for Chiral Self-Assembly and Circularly Polarized Luminescence.

Unlocking same‐sign CPL: solvent effects on spectral form and racemisation kinetics in nine‐coordinate chiral europium(III) complexes (2023)
Journal Article
De Rosa, D. F., Starck, M., Parker, D., & Pal, R. (2024). Unlocking same‐sign CPL: solvent effects on spectral form and racemisation kinetics in nine‐coordinate chiral europium(III) complexes. Chemistry - A European Journal, 30(9), Article e202303227. https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.202303227

Understanding the factors that shape the circularly polarised luminescence (CPL) emission profiles of europium(III)-based CPL emitters to have specific sign properties, e. g. monosignate individual CPL transitions, is key to design novel complexes fo... Read More about Unlocking same‐sign CPL: solvent effects on spectral form and racemisation kinetics in nine‐coordinate chiral europium(III) complexes.

Distinguishing Molecular Mechanical Action from Photothermal and Photodynamic Behavior (2023)
Journal Article
Beckham, J. L., Bradford, T. S., Ayala-Orozco, C., Santos, A. L., Arnold, D., van Venrooy, A. R., García-López, V., Pal, R., & Tour, J. M. (2024). Distinguishing Molecular Mechanical Action from Photothermal and Photodynamic Behavior. Advanced Materials, 36(7), Article 2306669. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202306669

Molecular motors (MM) are molecular machines, or nanomachines, that rotate unidirectionally upon photostimulation and perform mechanical work on their environment. In the last several years, it has been shown that the photomechanical action of MM can... Read More about Distinguishing Molecular Mechanical Action from Photothermal and Photodynamic Behavior.

Two-Photon Circularly Polarized Luminescence of Chiral Eu Complexes (2023)
Journal Article
Willis, O. G., Petri, F., De Rosa, D. F., Mandoli, A., Pal, R., Zinna, F., & Di Bari, L. (2023). Two-Photon Circularly Polarized Luminescence of Chiral Eu Complexes. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 145(46), 25170-25176. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.3c05957

We report the synthesis of chiral lanthanide complexes with extended π conjugation for efficient circularly polarized luminescence (CPL) via two-photon excitation (2PE). The pyridine bis-oxazoline (PyBox) core provides the chiral Ln3+ environment, wh... Read More about Two-Photon Circularly Polarized Luminescence of Chiral Eu Complexes.

1‐Azathioxanthone Appended Lanthanide(III) DO3A Complexes That Luminesce Following Excitation at 405 nm** (2023)
Journal Article
Gundorff Nielsen, L., Ravnsborg Hansen, A. K., Stachelek, P., Pal, R., & Just Sørensen, T. (2023). 1‐Azathioxanthone Appended Lanthanide(III) DO3A Complexes That Luminesce Following Excitation at 405 nm**. European Journal of Inorganic Chemistry, 26(24), Article e202300245. https://doi.org/10.1002/ejic.202300245

Since the pioneering report by Selvin, we have been fascinated by the potential of using lanthanide luminescence in bioimaging. The uniquely narrow emission lines and long luminescence lifetimes both provide the potential for background free images t... Read More about 1‐Azathioxanthone Appended Lanthanide(III) DO3A Complexes That Luminesce Following Excitation at 405 nm**.

Influence of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) in the synthesis of luminescent NaYF4:Yb,Er upconversion nanoparticles (2023)
Journal Article
Birch, R., Bruckbauer, J., Gajewska, M., Cios, G., Pal, R., & MacKenzie, L. E. (2023). Influence of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) in the synthesis of luminescent NaYF4:Yb,Er upconversion nanoparticles. Methods and Applications in Fluorescence, 11(3), Article 034001. https://doi.org/10.1088/2050-6120/acd837

Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) can be used to produce upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) in an advantageous manner, i.e. at modest temperatures in open-to-air conditions with simple hotplate and flask apparatus. However, the influence of PVP parameters o... Read More about Influence of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) in the synthesis of luminescent NaYF4:Yb,Er upconversion nanoparticles.

Hierarchical self-assembly in an RNA-based coordination polymer hydrogel (2023)
Journal Article
El-Zubir, O., Rojas Martinez, P., Dura, G., Doherty, C., Cucinotta, F., Mackenzie, L. E., Pal, R., Horrocks, B. R., & Houlton, A. (2023). Hierarchical self-assembly in an RNA-based coordination polymer hydrogel. Dalton Transactions, 52(17), 5545-5551. https://doi.org/10.1039/d3dt00634d

An RNA-based coordination polymer is formed by the aqueous reaction of CuI ions with the thionucleoside enantiomer (−)6-thioguanosine, (6tGH). The resulting polymer, [CuI(μ3-S-thioG)]n1, has a one-dimensional structure based on a [Cu4–S4] core and un... Read More about Hierarchical self-assembly in an RNA-based coordination polymer hydrogel.

Rapid handheld time-resolved circularly polarised luminescence photography camera for life and material sciences (2023)
Journal Article
De Rosa, D. F., Brook, P., Black, D. J., & Pal, R. (2023). Rapid handheld time-resolved circularly polarised luminescence photography camera for life and material sciences. Nature Communications, 14, Article 1537. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-37329-8

Circularly polarised luminescence (CPL) is gaining a rapidly increasing following and finding new applications in both life and material sciences. Spurred by recent instrumental advancements, the development of CPL active chiral emitters is going thr... Read More about Rapid handheld time-resolved circularly polarised luminescence photography camera for life and material sciences.

Synthesis and Structural Diversification of Circularly Polarised Luminescence Active, Helically Chiral, “Confused” N,N,O,C‐BODIPYs** (2022)
Journal Article
Clarke, R. G., Weatherston, J., Taj‐Aldeen, R. A., Waddell, P. G., McFarlane, W., Penfold, T. J., Bogaerts, J., Herrebout, W., Mackenzie, L. E., Pal, R., & Hall, M. J. (2023). Synthesis and Structural Diversification of Circularly Polarised Luminescence Active, Helically Chiral, “Confused” N,N,O,C‐BODIPYs**. ChemPhotoChem, 7(1), Article e202200194. https://doi.org/10.1002/cptc.202200194

Helically chiral boron-chelated dipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes are known to exhibit solution phase circularly polarized luminescence (CPL), but examples are limited to a few synthetically accessible molecular architectures. We report a B−N chelation, S... Read More about Synthesis and Structural Diversification of Circularly Polarised Luminescence Active, Helically Chiral, “Confused” N,N,O,C‐BODIPYs**.

Near-Infrared Circularly Polarised Luminescence from Helically Extended Chiral N,N,O,O -Boron Chelated Dipyrromethenes (2022)
Journal Article
Algoazy, N., Clarke, R. G., Penfold, T. J., Waddell, P. G., Probert, M. R., Aerts, R., Herrebout, W., Stachelek, P., Pal, R., Hall, M. J., & Knight, J. G. (2022). Near-Infrared Circularly Polarised Luminescence from Helically Extended Chiral N,N,O,O -Boron Chelated Dipyrromethenes. ChemPhotoChem, 6(9), Article e202200090. https://doi.org/10.1002/cptc.202200090

Synthetically straightforward π-extension of helically chiral N,N,O,O-boron chelated borondipyrromethenes (BODIPYs) has been achieved by incorporation of naphthyl rings into the BODIPY 3- and 5-positions. The effect of this extension on the photophys... Read More about Near-Infrared Circularly Polarised Luminescence from Helically Extended Chiral N,N,O,O -Boron Chelated Dipyrromethenes.

The Pink Box: Exclusive Homochiral Aromatic Stacking in a Bis-perylene Diimide Macrocycle (2022)
Journal Article
Penty, S. E., Zwijnenburg, M. A., Orton, G. R., Stachelek, P., Pal, R., Xie, Y., Griffin, S. L., & Barendt, T. A. (2022). The Pink Box: Exclusive Homochiral Aromatic Stacking in a Bis-perylene Diimide Macrocycle. Journal of the American Chemical Society, 144(27), 12290-12298. https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.2c03531

This work showcases chiral complementarity in aromatic stacking interactions as an effective tool to optimize the chiroptical and electrochemical properties of perylene diimides (PDIs). PDIs are a notable class of robust dye molecules and their rich... Read More about The Pink Box: Exclusive Homochiral Aromatic Stacking in a Bis-perylene Diimide Macrocycle.

BINOL blocks as accessible triplet state modulators in BODIPY dyes (2022)
Journal Article
Jiménez, J., Prieto-Montero, R., Serrano, S., Stachelek, P., Rebollar, E., Maroto, B. L., Moreno, F., Martinez-Martinez, V., Pal, R., García-Moreno, I., & de la Moya, S. (2022). BINOL blocks as accessible triplet state modulators in BODIPY dyes. Chemical Communications, 58(44), 6385-6388. https://doi.org/10.1039/d2cc00991a

BINOL moieties of different electronic demand are useful blocks for enabling the photo-production and modulation of triplet excited states in readily-accesible BINOL-based O-BODIPY dyes from standard F-BODIPY precursors. The rapid and rational develo... Read More about BINOL blocks as accessible triplet state modulators in BODIPY dyes.