Thin films of endohedral metallofullerenes embedded in polythiophene: a facile electrochemical preparation

A new electrochemical route for the synthesis of a hybrid thin film of endohedral metallofullerene (Dy@C82 is used here) and polythiophene is presented, which exploits the unique, compatible redox properties of the couple. The electrochemical response of the resulting Dy@C82/polythiophene film resembles that of Dy@C82 in organic solvents except for the potential peak shifts, but is markedly different from that of a pure metallofullerene solid film. Both the polythiophene backbones and the Dy@C82 moieties appear to retain their individual electrochemical properties in the hybrid film. The film was characterized by UV-visible and Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy, time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry, and scanning electron microscopy. The data suggest that the Dy@C82 molecules have been uniformly dispersed in the polythiophene matrix, forming a compact film. The formation and the electrochemical response of the hybrid film have been systematically studied, refining the viable strategy for the encapsulation of metallofullerenes into conducting polymers.