Structural Control of Multilayered Inorganic−Organic Hybrids Derived from Mixtures of Alkyltriethoxysilane and Tetraethoxysilane

Multilayered inorganic−organic hybrids were prepared by cohydrolysis and polycondensation of alkyltriethoxysilanes (C n TES, n = 8−18) and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS). Thin films were deposited from homogeneous solutions containing the oligomeric species by dip-coating. Self-assembly of co-condensed oligomers into lamellar structures depended essentially on the alkyl chain length of C n TES and the temperature of the solutions. By controlling the solution temperature during the dip-coating process, transparent and highly ordered films were formed from the mixtures of TEOS and C n TES with various alkyl chain lengths. The resulting hybrid materials were structurally different from those derived from C n TES alone and exhibited various interlayer structures depending on the alkyl chain length, which is due to the differences in the arrangements and conformations of the chains.