A new dye was developed, the photoluminescence properties of which are controlled by a chemical reaction. The fluorescence properties of 2-sulfanylhydroquinone dimers depend on the number of hydroxyl groups that are acylated. Unprotected or monoacylated 2-sulfanylhydroquinone dimers displayed good fluorescence properties, whereas diacylated and tetraacylated 2-sulfanylhydroquinone dimers showed dramatically