Facile and Equipment-Free Data Encryption and Decryption by Self-Encrypting Pt(II) Complex

Luminescence switching materials are vital to various data security-related techniques, including data encryption–decryption. Here, we report a family of pseudopolymorphs based on a diimine–platinum­(II) complex, Pt­(Me3SiCCbpyCCSiMe3)­(CCC6H4Br-3)2 (1), and systematically studied the influence of stacking modes on luminescence switching behaviors. Upon exposure to heat or tetrahydrofuran vapor, these pseudopolymorphs exhibit unusual stacking mode-intervened luminescence switching (SMILS) property that non-columnar and quasi-columnar pseudopolymorphs undergo single- and multi-step conversion processes, respectively, to the same non-columnar products. Systematic studies revealed that the unique SMILS behavior is caused by the existence of stable intermediate products as well as different conversion processes of pseudopolymorphs with distinct stacking modes. Such a new property leads to the self-encryption function of 1, which is very important for improving the existing data encryption–decryption technique. On this basis, we developed a facile, reusable, equipment-free technique with 1 as the only starting material and realized data encryption–decryption successfully.