Prof. Dr. Prince Ravat, Prof. Dr. Oliver Dumele, Universität zu Köln

Twisting Light and Spin: Helicenes as Multifunctional Molecular Spring

Helicenes, with their characteristic corkscrew-shaped geometry, serve as versatile molecular scaffolds for constructing configurationally robust chiral functional materials through precise structural design. Ravat group focuses on leveraging this unique architecture to control electronic and (chir)optical properties at the molecular level.
Dumele group has employed helicenes as building blocks for two-dimensional covalent organic frameworks (COFs), uncovering their crystalline order arising from homochiral (enantiopure) or racemic packing modes. This work has led to an unexpected discovery — the same [5]helicene can act as a photochemical spin-state switch, enabling reversible control of the magnetism with light.