Enhanced Optical Properties and Opaline Self‐Assembly of PPV Encapsulated in Mesoporous Silica Spheres

Abstract

A new poly(p‐phenylenevinylene) (PPV) composite material has been developed by the incorporation of insoluble PPV polymer chains in the pores of monodisperse mesoporous silica spheres through an ion‐exchange and in situ polymerization method. The polymer distribution within the resultant colloidal particles is characterized by electron microscopy, energy dispersive X‐ray microanalysis, powder X‐ray diffraction, and nitrogen adsorption. It was found that the polymer was selectively incorporated into the mesopores of the silica host and was well distributed throughout the body of the particles. This confinement of the polymer influences the optical properties of the composite; these were examined by UV–vis and fluorescence spectroscopy and time‐correlated single‐photon counting. The results show a material that exhibits an extremely high fluorescence quantum yield (approaching 85%), and an improved resistance to oxidative photobleaching compared to PPV. These enhanced optical properties are further complemented by the overall processability of the colloidal material. In marked contrast to the insolubility of PPV, the material can be processed as a stable colloidal dispersion, and the individual composite spheres can be self‐assembled into opaline films using the vertical deposition method. The bandgap of the opal can be engineered to overlap with the emission band of the polymer, which has significant ramifications for lasing.

Fluorescent polystyrene photonic crystals self-assembled with water-soluble conjugated polyrotaxanes

“…Processability of the active materials is obviously crucial to their incorporation into organic PhC, and, interestingly, water-soluble conjugated polymers with high photoluminescence (PL) efficiency provide an intriguing opportunity for use in combination with plastic PhC templates, but only a few attempts have been reported so far. [19][20][21][22] Conjugated polyelectrolytic rotaxanes 23 ( Fig. 1) offer a very interesting class of materials to incorporate into PhCs since they benefit from a supramolecular architecture in which conjugated backbones such as poly(4,4 -diphenylene vinylene) (PDV) are threaded through cyclodextrin rings (β-CD), that sterically impose increased intermolecular distances.…”

Conjugated polymer and spirolactam rhodamine-B derivative co-functionalized mesoporous silica nanoparticles as the scaffold for the FRET-based ratiometric sensing of mercury (II) ions

“…Poly(pphenylenevinylene) (PPV) was introduced into the channel of MSN by ion-exchange with CTACl surfactant and in situ polymerization route, and then the template was removed, forming PPV@MSN. For the heat treatment (polymerization process) of PPV precursors, we used the high temperature liquor of 1-octadecene instead of the high temperature calcination to deal with the samples [39]. This method can effectively avoid the aggregation of the mesoporous nanomaterials and improve the dispersion of mesoporous materials in solution.…”

“…Before centrifugal separating, added 3 mL of cyclohexane in the cool solution to reduce the viscosity of the solution. Washed with ethanol twice, and dispersed in methanol at last [39].…”

Fluorescent monodisperse spherical particles based on mesoporous silica containing rhodamine 6G

“…Fluorescent monodisperse mesoporous silica spheres also have prospects to be used in radiation gaining and lasing systems based on colloidal photonic crystals composed of these particles [17,18]. Important physicochemical properties that account for the increasing interest in investigating and expanding the field of application of monodisperse mesoporous silica spheres include their large specific surface area (700-1200 m 2 /g) and pore volume (0.3-0.7 cm 3 /g) [19,20], controllable dimensions of parti cles and pores, and the possibility of managing the properties of both external and internal surfaces of the mesoporous structure.…”