Emission Library and Applications of 2,1,3‐Benzothiadiazole and Its Derivative‐Based Luminescent Metal‐Organic Frameworks

Organic linker‐based luminescent metal‐organic frameworks (LMOFs) have received extensive attention due to their promising applications in chemical sensing, energy transfer, solid‐state‐lighting and heterogeneous catalysis. Benefiting from the virtually unlimited emissive organic linkers and the intrinsic advantages of MOFs, significant progress has been made in constructing LMOFs with specific emission behaviors and outstanding performances. Among these reported organic linkers, 2,1,3‐benzothiadiazole and its derivatives, as unique building units with tunable electron‐withdrawing abilities, can be used to synthesize numerous emissive linkers with a donor‐bridge‐acceptor‐bridge‐donor type structure. These linkers were utilized to coordinate with different metal nodes, forming LMOFs with diverse underlying nets and optical properties. In this Minireview, 2,1,3‐benzothiadiazole and its derivative‐based organic linkers and their corresponding LMOFs are summarized with which an emission library is built between the linker structures and the emission behaviors of constructed LMOFs. In particular, the preparation of LMOFs with customized emission properties ranging from deep‐blue to near‐infrared and sizes from dozens to hundreds of nanometers is discussed in detail. The applications of these LMOFs, including chemical sensing, energy harvesting and transfer, and catalysis, are then highlighted. Key perspectives and challenges for the future development of LMOFs are also addressed.