High performance oxygen sensing nanofibrous membranes of Eu(III) complex/polystyrene prepared by electrospinning

In this paper, we report the synthesis, characterization, crystal structure, and photophysical properties of a Eu(3+) complex of Eu(TTA)(3)Phen, where TTA=2-thenoyltrifluoroacetonate, and Phen=1,10-phenanthroline. Its elementary application for oxygen-sensing application is also investigated by doping it into a polymer matrix of polystyrene (PS). Experimental data suggest that the 3wt% doped Eu(TTA)(3)Phen nanofibrous membrane exhibits a high sensitivity of 3.4 towards oxygen with a good linear relationship of R(2)=0.996. In addition, the 3wt% doped Eu(TTA)(3)Phen nanofibrous membrane owns a quick response of 9s towards molecular oxygen, along with its excellent atmosphere insensitivity and photobleaching resistance. All these results suggest that both Eu(TTA)(3)Phen and Eu(TTA)(3)Phen/PS system are promising candidates for oxygen-sensing optical sensors.