Diarylethene systems have attracted widely attentions and have been applied in photo, electronic, thermal, chemical, biochemcial and so on, for their excellent thermal stability and fatigue resistance. However, it still remains large room to improve the performance and the practical application areas for diarylethene type photochromic dyes. This article focuses on the progress of diarylethene derivatives in recent years. Furthermore, it illustrates the great effects of steric hindered bridge ethene on the performance
of diarylethene series dyes.