Structural and photophysical studies of few layers of reduced graphene oxide functionalized with Sn(IV) tetrakis (4-pyridyl)porphyrin dichloride

•The X-Ray diffraction and SEM shows a clear interaction between FRGO and SnTPyP+2.•Raman spectra of FRGO/SnTPyP+2 show a π-π intermolecular interaction.•Transient Photoluminescence of FRGO/SnTPyP+2 confirm the charge/energy transfer.

Reduced graphene oxide has attracted great interest owing to its exceptional properties, and its combination with Porphyrins has many potential applications in optoelectronics, light emitting diodes and dye-sensitized solar cells, because of the long excited-state lifetimes and delocalizable electron density on the porphyrin. Few layers of reduced graphene oxide (FRGO) were synthesized and functionalized with Sn(IV) tetrakis(4-pyridyl) porphyrin dichloride (SnTPyP2+). The structural and photophysical properties of the solution-cast thin films prepared from this composite were investigated by means of Scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman scattering, FT-Infrared, UV-vis absorption, steady state Photoluminescence (PL), and time resolved PL (TR-PL). The results showed strong interactions between these hybrids components and successful deposition of the porphyrin on the FRGO layers. Moreover, a steady state PL quenching of the SnTPyP2+-FRGO composite film indicated an important interaction suggesting a photoinduced electron transfer between SnTPyP2+ and FRGO. The TR-PL measurements of the photogenerated charges lifetimes showed major change for the SnTPyP2+ after its interaction with the FRGO, resulting in a decrease in the PL mean lifetime.