title: Photoluminescence Mechanism and Photocatalytic Activity of Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Materials Formed by Sequential Vapor Infiltration.
abstract: Organic-inorganic hybrid materials formed by sequential vapor infiltration (SVI) of trimethylaluminum into polyester fibers are demonstrated, and the photoluminescence of the fibers is evaluated using a combined UV-vis and photoluminescence excitation (PLE) spectroscopy approach. The optical activity of the modified fibers depends on infiltration thermal processing conditions and is attributed to the reaction mechanisms taking place at different temperatures. At low temperatures a single excitation band and dual emission bands are observed, while, at high temperatures, two distinct absorption bands and one emission band are observed, suggesting that the physical and chemical structure of the resulting hybrid material depends on the SVI temperature. Along with enhancing the photoluminescence intensity of the PET fibers, the internal quantum efficiency also increased to 5-fold from ∼4-5% to ∼24%. SVI processing also improved the photocatalytic activity of the fibers, as demonstrated by photodeposition of Ag and Au metal particles out of an aqueous metal salt solution onto fiber surfaces via UVA light exposure. Toward applications in flexible electronics, well-defined patterning of the metallic materials is achieved by using light masking and focused laser rastering approaches.
authors.affiliation: Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, North Carolina State University , Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States.
authors.forename: Halil I
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Akyildiz
authors.affiliation: Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, North Carolina State University , Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States.
authors.forename: Kelly L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Stano
authors.affiliation: Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development, and Engineering Center , Redstone Arsenal, Alabama 35898, United States.
authors.forename: Adam T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.affiliation: Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development, and Engineering Center , Redstone Arsenal, Alabama 35898, United States.|Department of Physics, Duke University , Durham, North Carolina 27708, United States.
authors.forename: Henry O
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Everitt
authors.affiliation: Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, North Carolina State University , Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, United States.
authors.forename: Jesse S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Jur