Highly efficient non-covalent energy transfer in all-organic macrocycles

The use of aromatic organic macrocycles as supramolecular hosts for non-covalent energy transfer is reported herein. These macrocycles lead to stronger binding and more efficient energy transfer compared to commercially available γ-cyclodextrin. This energy transfer was particularly efficient for the highly toxic benzo[a]pyrene with a fluorescent BODIPY acceptor, with up to a 5-fold increase in the fluorophore emission observed.