Supramolecular assembly with ionic, redox-responsive poly(ferrocenylsilanes) : engineering of interfaces and molecular release applications

This thesis describes the synthesis and electrostatic assembly of organometallic poly(ferrocenylsilane) (PFS) strong polyelectrolytes. The distinctive structural features of poly(ferrocenylsilanes) come from the silicon and iron atoms in the main chain. The presence of redox-active ferrocene units in the polymer backbone provides unique redox-responsive properties to PFS. The charged nature and redox-responsiveness of these organometallic polyelectrolytes makes them particularly useful in the electrostatic self-assembly process for the fabrication of novel functional supramolecular nanostructures. A major part of the research described in the thesis (Chapter 4-6) is focused on the electrostatic layer-by-layer assembly featuring poly(ferrocenylsilane) polyelectrolytes.