The Concentration-Dependent Distribution of Tris(4,7'-diphenyl-1,10'-phenanthroline) Ruthenium (II) within Sol-Gel-Derived Thin Films

Organic dye-doped glasses, viz., ruthenium (II) tris(4,7'-diphenyl-1,10'-phenanthroline) $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ incorporated into thin silica xerogel films produced by the sol-gel method, were prepared and their $O_2$ quenching properties investigated as a function of the $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ concentration (3-400 ${\mu}M$) within the xerogel. The ratio of the luminescence from the $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$-doped films in the presence of $N_2$ and $O_2$ ($I_{N2}/I_{O2}$) was used to describe the film sensitivity to $O_2$ quenching. ($I_{N2}/I_{O2}$ changed three-fold over the $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ concentration range. Time-resolved intensity decay studies showed that there are two discrete $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ populations within the xerogels (${\tau}_1$ ~ 300 ns; ${\tau}_2$ ~ 3000 ns) whose relative fraction changes as the $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ concentration changes. The increased $O_2$ sensitivity that is observed at the higher $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ concentrations is a manifestation of a greater fraction of the 3000 ns $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ species (more susceptible to $O_2$ quenching). A model is presented to describe the observed response characteristics resulting from $[Ru(dpp)_3]^{2+}$ distribution within the xerogel.