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Water-Stable Carborane-Based Eu3+/Tb3+ Metal-Organic Frameworks for Tunable Time-Dependent Emission Color and Their
Zhen Li1, Rosario Núñez1, Mark E Light2
1Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
Chemistry of Materials : a Publication of the American Chemical Society
|May 31, 2022
Summary
Researchers developed water-stable, printable lanthanide metal-organic frameworks (Ln-MOFs) with tunable luminescence. These materials demonstrate effective energy transfer for high quantum yields and lifetimes, enabling advanced anticounterfeiting applications.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Inorganic Chemistry
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Luminescent lanthanide metal-organic frameworks (Ln-MOFs) offer promising optical properties but face challenges in water stability, printability, and efficient synthesis for practical use.
- Achieving high quantum yields and tunable emission in Ln-MOFs is crucial for advanced applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and synthesize a series of water-stable, printable Ln-MOFs using a hydrophobic ligand (mCBL).
- To investigate the tunable emission, energy transfer (ET) dynamics, and luminescence lifetimes in mixed-metal Europium (Eu) and Terbium (Tb) MOFs.
- To explore the potential of these novel MOFs in anticounterfeiting and bar-coding applications.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of CB-Eu_xTb_{1-x} MOFs using 1,7-di(4-carboxyphenyl)-1,7-dicarba-closo-dodecaborane (mCBL) ligand.
- Characterization of material stability in water and at high temperatures.
- Spectroscopic analysis to study tunable emission, energy transfer (Tb to Eu), and time-dependent luminescence.
- Evaluation of quantum yield (QY) and luminescence lifetime.
Main Results:
- Developed water-stable and high-temperature resistant CB-Eu_xTb_{1-x} MOFs.
- Achieved tunable green-to-red emission with efficient Tb$^{3+}$ to Eu$^{3+}$ energy transfer (ET).
- Observed a significant increase in quantum yield (up to 69.2%) and tunable luminescence lifetimes (0.5–10,000 μs) due to effective ET.
- Demonstrated printable water-based inks of Eu/Tb coordination polymers (CPs).
Conclusions:
- The synthesized Ln-MOFs exhibit excellent stability, tunable luminescence, and enhanced optical properties driven by effective ET.
- The time-dependent emission and high QY offer a viable route for developing high-security anticounterfeiting materials.
- Printable Eu/Tb coordination polymers present a convenient platform for anticounterfeiting and bar-coding applications.
