Smooth and large scale organometallic complex film by vapor-phase ligand exchange reaction

A simple and reliable method for the formation of smooth and large-scale organometallic complex thin films was developed. We applied chemical vapor deposition (CVD) for this. From the vapor-phase reaction of Mo(CO)6 and 2,2′-bipyridine, large-scale and highly smooth Mo(CO)4(2,2′-bipy) films were obtained. Regardless of the thickness, they show a high smoothness and stability in ambient conditions. Chemical structure and composition of the resulting film were confirmed by 1H-NMR, Raman, FT-IR spectroscopy and elemental analyses. Smooth and uniform surface of the resulting films was characterized using AFM. We believe that our method will provide great opportunities for the fundamental studies of traditional organometallic complexes and their applications by taking advantages of thin film geometry.