Gelation enabled charge separation following visible light excitation using self-assembled perylene bisimides.

Perylene bisimides (PBIs) can be functionalised to enable controlled aggregation into complex supramolecular structures and are promising materials for photovoltaic and solar fuel applications. Amino acid appended PBIs such as PBI-alanine (PBI-A) have been found to form photoconductive films containing worm-like structures that enable charge transport. However, despite being strong chromophores in the visible region, when PBI-A films are prepared by drying down solutions, activity only occurs under UV illumination.