Solution Processed, Versatile Multilayered Structures for the Generation of Metal-Enhanced Fluorescence

We present an all-solution processed multilayered structure completely obtained via spin-coating, which can be used to study and optimize the phenomenon of metal-enhanced fluorescence. Indeed, the electromagnetic interactions occurring between fluorescent probes and localized surface plasmons typical of metal nanoparticles (NPs), which influence the fluorescence quantum yield, are strongly dependent on the nanoparticle/molecule distance. The platform proposed here offers unique advantages in terms of processability, allowing a fine-tuning of such a distance in a single deposition step. Fluorescence versus fluorophore/AuNP spacing curves are shown for two organic systems, namely, a perylene-based dye dispersed in a polymer matrix and a polyconjugated polymer (poly(3-hexyl­thio­phene)), interacting with a nanostructured gold thin film. In both cases, optimal distances and enhancement factors have been measured.