Crystal Morphology of Luminescent Microcrystals Based on Eu(III) Coordination Polymers Changed by Surfactant Solutions

Abstract The morphological control of Eu(III) coordination polymers with intermolecular interactions between polymer chains was demonstrated with surfactants as molecular modulators. [Eu(hfa)3(m-dpb)]n coordination polymers (hfa; hexafluoroacetylacetonate, m-dpb; 1,3-bis(diphenylphosphoryl)benzene) showed crystal growth in CTAB/SDS solution (CTAB, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide; SDS, sodium dodecyl sulfate). The crystal morphology of [Eu(hfa)3(m-dpb)]n was changed under the synthetic conditions with various types of cationic surfactants (N+(CH3)3CnH2n+1; n = 8, 12, and 16). The Eu(III) coordination polymer crystals were observed as plates and slender rod shapes. Their crystal morphologies suggest that the crystal growth along the chain growth direction is faster than that along the chain stacking direction.