Layered Inorganic/Organic Photographic Composites: Novel Strategies for Delivering Active Chemistries to Photographic Media

摘要

We demonstrate several synthetic design strategies for assembling layered inorganic/organic photographic composites. Design emphasis is placed upon assembling multiple functionalities into complex chemical structures. Two general design strategies employed in the authors' laboratory are demonstrated, including intercalation chemistry and organic/inorganic self-assembly. Materials prepared by the above strategies are used to develop a novel approach for sequestering and, later delivering, functional chemistry into photographic media. The approach relies upon intercalation chemistry-a reversible process whereby atoms, molecules, macromolecules, and polymers can be inserted into the interstices of a layered matrix. We demonstrate that layered materials are able to effectively sequester photographically useful molecules in aqueous and gelatin environments, and we further demonstrate that the absorbed molecules can later be released from the interlayer region to perform a desired photochemical function. We have established two general release mechanisms by which intercalated functional chemistry can be sequestrated and delivered via a chemical switch. The process has significant potential as a general method for the controlled, temporal release of materials of photographic significance.