Stable thin films and hollow spheres composing chiral polyaniline composites

Chiral polyaniline composite (CPAC) thin films were fabricated by self-assembly using diazoresin (DR) and CPAC. The weak linkage between the DR and CPAC of the film will convert to covalent bonds under UV irradiation or heating, and the thin film becomes very stable toward polar solvents and electrolyte aqueous solutions. Core-shell particles with stable DR/CPAC shell and polystyrene (PS) core can be prepared by similar methods. After the PS core is removed by chemical etching, stable DR/CPAC hollow spheres were obtained. Circular dichroism spectra and cyclic voltammetry measurements show that the DR/CPAC thin films are chirally active and possess good electrochemical stability.