Donor–acceptor–donor type AIEgens based on thieno[3.4‐c]pyrrole‐4,6‐dione: Synthesis, electropolymerization, and electrochromism

Photoelectric functional materials with electrochemical reversible activity and fluorescence intensities have attracted significant interest due to their wide range of applications in optoelectronic devices. In this work, a series of photoresponsive and electroactive monomers based on thieno[3.4‐c]pyrrole‐4,6‐dione (TPD) are synthesized and characterized. They possess planar geometry with smaller dihedral angles owing to the existence of a noncovalent conformation lock coming from the S atoms and the O atoms. Crystallographic, spectroscopic, and computational results reveal that the introduction of the TPD unit can endow the monomers with aggregation‐induced emission (AIE), reduced energy levels, and increased electrochemical activity. The monomers were successfully polymerized through the electrochemical method, and the corresponding polymers displayed reversible electrochemical activity and stability. Moreover, polymer films based on 3,3‐dimethyl‐3,4‐dihydro‐2H‐thieno[3,4‐b][1,4]dioxepine (ProE)‐TPD have electrochromic properties in the near‐infrared field with a high value of optical contrast ratio (∆T) of 27.1% at 1000 nm. Replacing thiophene with TPD unit in D‐A‐D AIEgens achieves reduced energy levels and increased electrochemical activity in polymer films.