Polymorphism-Triggered Reversible Thermochromic Fluorescence of a Simple 1,8-Naphthyridine

The fluorescent behavior in the solid state of a naphthyridine-based donor–acceptor heterocycle is presented. Synthesized as a crystalline blue-emissive solid (Pbca), the compound can easily be transformed in its P21/c polymorphic form by heating. The latter material shows blue to cyan emission switching triggered by a reversible thermally induced phase transformation. This fact, the reversible acidochromism, and the strong anisotropic fluorescence of the compound in the solid state, account for the potential of 1,8-naphthyridines as simple and highly tunable organic compounds in materials science.