title: Promotion of Förster resonance energy transfer in a saponite clay containing luminescent polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane and rhodamine dye.
abstract: A new hybrid photostable saponite clay with embedded donor-acceptor dyes was prepared and characterized in this work. The saponite is intercalated with a luminescent polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane, which transfers the photoexcitation energy directly to an acceptor dye (rhodamine B). The obtained composite material was characterized by means of XRD, TEM microscopy, and UV/Vis and photoluminescence spectroscopy. A physicochemical study showed that the system behaved as an efficient Förster resonance energy transfer pair, owing to the very good spectral overlap of donor emission (λem =510-540 nm) and acceptor absorption in the λ=530-570 nm range. The hybrid material represents the first example of a photonic antenna based on a synthetic saponite clay and can be considered a step forward in the search for new, efficient, and stable materials suitable for light-harvesting applications.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze e Innovazione Tecnologica and Nano-SISTEMI Interdisciplinary Centre, Università del Piemonte Orientale "A. Avogadro", V. Teresa Michel, 11, 15121 Alessandria (Italy), Fax: (+39) 0131360250.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Olivero
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Carniato
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bisio
authors.forename: Leonardo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Marchese
keywords: FRET; clays; donor-acceptor systems; dyes/pigments; photochemistry