Mirrorless Cholesteric Lasers Using ESIPT-Based AIE Dyes via a Gain–Structure Decoupling Strategy

We report a high-efficiency mirrorless laser system based on aggregation-induced emission (AIE) dye-infiltrated cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) photonic structures, enabled by a gain-structure decoupling strategy. Traditional dye-doped CLC lasers are constrained by concentration quenching and photonic structure disruption at high dye loading. To overcome these limitations, we fabricate nanoporous cholesteric polymer scaffolds via photopolymerization-induced phase separation, followed by selective removal of nonreactive mesogens. These porous templates are subsequently infiltrated with an excited-state intramolecular proton transfer-type AIE dye, exhibiting strong emission and a large Stokes shift in the aggregated state. By tuning porosity through controlled composition, we achieve high dye uptake without compromising the cholesteric order, enabling enhanced optical gain. Comparative studies between directly doped and postinfiltrated architectures reveal that the decoupled system significantly improves output intensity and reduces lasing threshold. Our approach provides a robust framework for developing compact, flexible, and polarization-controlled distributed feedback lasers free from external mirrors.