A clay-metal complex multilayer film was prepared by the Langmuir-Blodgett technique. A monolayer of an amphiphilic ruthenium(II) complex, [Ru(phen)2(dC18bpy)](ClO4)2 (phen ) 1,10-phenanthroline, dC18bpy ) 4,4′-dioctadecyl-2,2′-bipyridyl), was formed on an aqueous suspension of hectorite clay (Li-HT). The monolayer acted as a template for adsorption of a clay particle. A hybrid monolayer of a clay and a metal complex was transferred onto a hydrophilic glass plate to form a Z-type multilayer film. X-ray diffraction, UV-visible and FT-IR absorption spectra, and Brewster angle and atomic force microscopic (AFM) measurements confirmed the formation of an ordered film of [Ru(phen)2(dC18bpy)] 2+ /hectorite with the layer thickness of 5.4 nm.

A clay-metal complex hybrid film with the thickness of 5.0 ± 1.0 nm was prepared by the Langmuir-Blodgett technique. According to the method, a hectorite clay dispersed in an aqueous subphase was adsorbed by a cationic monolayer of amphiphilic Ru(II) complex. The surface structure of a film deposited onto a hydrophilic glass plate was studied with an atomic force microscope (AFM).