Polyelectrolyte multilayers with perfluorinated phthalocyanine selectively entrapped inside the perfluorinated nanocompartments

A novel per fl uorinated magnesium phthalocyanine (MgPcF 64 ) was synthesized and employed to probe nanodomains in hydrophobically modi fi ed, amphiphilic cationic polyelectrolytes bearing alkyl and/or fl uoroalkyl side chains. MgPcF 64 was found to be solubilized exclusively in the aqueous solutions of the fl uorocarbon modi fi ed polycations, occupying the per fl uorinated nanocompartments provided, while analogous polyelectrolytes with alkyl side chains forming hydrocarbon nanocompartments could not host the MgPcF 64 dye. Multilayer fi lms were fabricated by means of the layer-by-layer (LbL) deposition method using sodium poly(styrene sulfonate) as a polyanion. Linear multilayer growth was con fi rmed by UV-Vis spectroscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry. Atomic force microscopy studies indicated that the micellar conformation of the polycations is preserved in the multilayer fi lms. Fluorescence spectroscopy measurements con fi rmed that MgPcF 64 stays embedded inside the fl uorocarbon domains after the deposition process. This facile way of selectively incorporating water-insoluble, photoactive molecules into the structure of polyelectrolyte multilayers may be utilized for nanoengineering of ultrathin fi lm- based optoelectronic devices.