Photoswitchable Molecular Glue for Carbon Nanotubes Reversibly Controls Electronic Mobility with Light

The use of light as an external stimulus to control organic supramolecular structures can play an important role in molecular devices. Photoswitchable azobenzenes are well suited for such applications due to their photoresponsive properties and a thermally induced reversal from the cis to the thermodynamically stable trans state. In this work, we have demonstrated for the first time that an azobenzene-based tetraphenylethylene (TPE) system capable of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) behavior can act as a molecular glue that can noncovalently functionalize multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs). The resulting photoresponsive, noncovalent hybrid material shows reversible conductivity switching upon irradiation with light by making use of the reversible cis-trans isomerization.