Sunlight-powered multicolor and uniform luminescence in material-engineered living plants

Abstract

Plant-based lighting holds significant potential across various fields, including architecture and urban planning. However, manipulating luminescence color and intensity in plants has been challenging. Traditional genetic engineering approaches are constrained by the limited diversity of bioluminescent genes. Material-engineered plants often have poor optical performance due to increased surface defects in nanoparticles, and particle transport is further limited by the spatially resolved physics of plants. To address these challenges, we innovatively introduced micron-sized afterglow particles (>5 μm) into Echeveria ‘Mebina’. This succulent’s compact microstructure and abundant intercellular spaces facilitate efficient transport of larger particles, resulting in uniform, enhanced, multicolor luminescence. This approach surpasses the traditional trade-off between particle size and luminescence performance, producing brightly luminescent plants with sunlight recharging and, for the first time, enabling successful development of multicolor luminescent plants. The process is straightforward and cost-effective and achieves luminescence within 10 min, paving the way for practical applications in plant-based lighting.