Periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs) have a well ordered mesoporous structure, a high thermal and mechanical stability and a uniform distribution of organic functionalities in the pore walls. The organic groups allow PMOs to be modified and functionalized by using a wide range of organic reactions. Since their first report in 1999, PMOs have found a vast range of applications, such as for catalysis, adsorbents, low-k films, biomedical supports and also for optical applications. Optical applications are very interesting as PMOs offer the possibility of designing advanced luminescent hybrid materials comprising of organic components, yet with much higher stability and very good processability. Despite their promising possibilities, the optical properties of pristine PMOs and PMOs grafted with d-metal or f-metal ions and complexes have been explored less frequently. In this review, we aimed to overview the exciting light emitting properties of various reported lanthanide PMO hybrid materials and interest the reader in this promising application for lanthanide PMO materials.
Keywords: hybrid materials; lanthanides; light emission; light harvesting; luminescence; periodic mesoporous organosilica (PMO); sensing.