Tunable photochemical properties of a covalently anchored and spatially confined organic polymer in a layered compound.

A covalently anchored and spatially confined organic polymer was formed in a layered compound with a surface-modified layer. The resultant anchored and confined polymer showed tunable photochemical properties with the incorporation of a variety of guest molecules originating from the specific incorporation states. The layer surface of an inorganic layered compound was modified by an organic molecule with vinyl groups. The precursor layered composite accommodated N-vinylcarbazole (VCz), a vinyl monomer, in the hydrophobic interlayer space. The introduction of VCz induced the simultaneous exfoliation of the layered structures and copolymerization with vinyl groups on the layer surface. The covalently anchored and spatially confined poly(N-vinylcarbazole) (PVCz) with tunable photochemical properties was formed in a layered structure. The present study shows the versatile potential of polymers with anchored and confined states in surface-functionalized layered composites.