The peculiarities of formation of the metal nanoparticles in irradiated polymer metal complexes

The radiation-induced reduction of metal ions in the films of triple metal polymer complexes of polyacrylic acid–polyethyleneimine–copper(II) or nickel(II) (PAA–PEI–Cu2+ or PAA–PEI–Ni2+) was studied by EPR and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). It was shown that irradiation of the swollen polymer films in the water–alcohol environment resulted in effective reduction of the metal ions. The exchange between the swollen film and outer environment was found to be an important factor for ion reduction and stabilization of metal particles. EPR data have revealed pronounced effect of the ligand environment on the reduction efficiency. The electron microscopy studies have demonstrated that the dimensions of main fraction of metal particles obtained by the radiation-chemical reduction are in the range of 2–2.5 nm both for Cu and for Ni complexes.