Photoactive rare earth (Eu3+, Tb3+) hybrids with organically modified silica covalently bonded polymeric chain

1,3-Bis(2-formylphenoxy)-2-propanol (BFPP) is grafted to 3-(triethoxysilyl)-propyl isocyanate (TESPIC) to prepare the organic precursor BFPP-Si. Then, the organic precursor BFPP-Si is coordinated with rare earth ion to obtain the luminescent center RE-BFPP-Si. Allylamine monomer (AM) is modified by TESPIC to form the precursor AM-Si which is then polymerized with the benzoyl peroxide as the initiator to form the polymer precursor PAM-Si. The other polymer precursor polyethylene glycol (PEG)-Si is achieved through the grafting reaction between PEG and TESPIC. Subsequently, the hybrid materials RE-BFPP-Si-PAM or RE-BFPP-Si-PEG are assembled in which RE-BFPP-Si and PAM-Si or PEG-Si connected with Si-O bonds through sol-gel process and characterized with scanning electronic microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and TG-DSC curves. Their photophysical properties are especially studied in details, indicating that the introduction of organic polymer chain is favorable for the luminescence lifetime and quantum efficiency.