Synthesis of Bidimensional Prussian Blue Analogue Using an Inverted Langmuir-Schaefer Method

One of the aspects of modern materials science that has been captivating scientific interest for the past decade is low-dimensional systems. This stems from the fact that the physical, chemical, and biological properties of such systems are often vastly different from their bulk counterparts. Additionally, low-dimensionality structures frequently serve as a convenient platform for device applications. However, such materials are typically constructed from building blocks that are inherently three-dimensional, and so, from a morphological point of view, these can still be categorized as bulk powders or crystals. To push the boundaries of reduced dimensionality, we synthesized truly two-dimensional films of Prussian blue analogues (mixed valence tetracyanides) by combining an air-water interface reaction and a novel inverted Langmuir-Schaefer technique. The methodology introduced in this study offers control and tailoring over the Prussian blue analogues' film characteristics, which is an important step toward their incorporation into tangible applications. Standard isotherms were collected as a function of the initial reactant volume, and a number of characterization techniques such as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction (SAED), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were performed on films transferred on various substrates. The results indicated a collection of single-crystalline and polycrystalline flakes possessing different thicknesses and having a structural coherence length of 11 ± 3 nm.