Supramolecular Electroactive Materials via Ionic Self-assembly of Polyelectrolyte–surfactant Complexes – Chemistry, Practical Aspects, and Applications

CORTEZ, M. LORENA; MARMISOLLÉ, WALDEMAR; BATTAGLINI, FERNANDO; AZZARONI, OMAR

Supramolecular Nanotechnology: Advanced Design of Self‐Assembled Functional Materials

wiley

Año: 2023; p. 301 - 323

As an important bottom-up strategy, supramolecular self-assembly has been widely applied to nano- and mesostructured materials with complex functions. Various functional materials can easily be constructed through this strategy. In the past decade, ionic self-assembly (ISA) based on the electrostatic interactions of building blocks with opposite charges has been increasingly employed to construct functional materials because of its advantages, such as simplicity, reliability, flexibility, and versatility. ISA has been found to follow a cooperative mechanism and, in most of the cases, the resulting self-assembled materials exhibit mesoscale organization. In this way, the cooperative assembly of surfactants with oppositely charged polyelectrolytes has opened up a facile noncovalent route for the formation of various functional materials. The properties and structures of these supramolecular materials can be altered as desired by changing the building blocks. In recent years, the electroactive supramolecular materials have received much attention because of their potential applications as building blocks in biosensing devices. For example, electroactive polyelectrolyte–surfactant complexes with a high degree of mesostructural order and adjustable functions can easily be prepared on conducting electrode supports using drop-casting or spin coating techniques. In this chapter, we introduce readers to the use of redox-active polyelectrolyte–surfactant complexes as platforms to design and build up electrochemical interfacial architectures. We show that these supramolecular materials are ideally suited for the incorporation of redox-active functions as well as the creation of electroactive nanocomposite materials through the integration of metal nanoparticles. The aim of this review is twofold: first, to discuss the fundamental aspects of polyelectrolyte–surfactant complexes, and second, to inform the reader as to what can be done with electroactive polyelectrolyte–surfactant complexes in (bio)electrochemistry. It is, therefore, hoped that this chapter will stimulate and contribute to the ongoing process of cross-fertilization that is driving this fascinating area of supramolecular chemistry.