Lifetime-ultra-prolonged luminescent multilayer thin films with electronic microenvironment

In this report, luminescent multilayer thin films (MTFs) based on functional molecules intercalated into layered double hydroxides (LDHs) and montmorillonite (MMT) nanosheets were fabricated by layer-by-layer assembly method (LBL method). Exfoliated LDHs and MMT nanosheets with opposite charges can be expected to provide an electronic microenvironment (EME) for chromophores, which are not found in previous literatures, and to offer the inorganic rigid building blocks at the same time. Surprisingly, the lifetimes of MTFs with EME's architecture are significantly prolonged, compared with that of the pristine powder, even considerably longer than those of the MTFs without EME's architecture. Therefore, it is highly expected that the EME formed by oppositely-charged inorganic nanosheets has remarkable influence on enhancing the lifetimes of chromophores, which suggests a new potential method to develop novel light-emitting materials and optical devices.