Open Access

ARTICLE

Quasi 2D Silicon Nanosheet and Polyaniline Nanocomposites: Structural and Photoluminescence Properties

Debosmita Karar^1,*, Ashit Kumar Pramanick², Mallar Ray³
1 Biomaterials and Medical Devices Division, CSIR-Central Glass and Ceramic Research Institute, Jadavpur, Kolkata, India
2 Materials Science and Technology Division, CSIR-National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, India
3 School of Engineering and Sciences, Tecnológico de Monterrey, Av. Eugenio Garza Sada 2501 Sur, Tecnológico, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
* Corresponding Author: Debosmita Karar. Email:
(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Cellulose and Nanocellulose in Polymer Composites: Sustainable Engineering Approach)

Journal of Polymer Materials https://doi.org/10.32604/jpm.2026.078127

Received 24 December 2025; Accepted 24 March 2026; Published online 19 May 2026

Abstract

Experimental preparation of graphene like 2D silicon is a great challenge due to the dominant sp³ hybridization in silicon. We have synthesized quasi 2D crystalline silicon nanosheets by topochemical exfoliation of layered Zintl phases, which bear signatures of properties predicted theoretically. Quasi-two-dimensional silicon nanosheets were uniformly dispersed within a conducting polyaniline matrix to fabricate solid-state nanocomposites with varying silicon loadings. The resulting polyaniline–quasi-2D silicon composites were systematically examined for their structural characteristics and optical emission behavior. Notably, the nanocomposites exhibit intense photoluminescence at room temperature, with an emission efficiency significantly higher than that of pristine quasi-2D silicon. The functional characteristics of the nanocomposite can be tailored by adjusting the loading and spatial dispersion of the nanoscale components, the nature of the host matrix, and the interfacial interactions between them. This nanocomposite is a promising candidate for the development of efficient thermoelectric material and has huge potential for applications in electronics and sensing.

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Keywords

2D material; silicon nanosheet; polyaniline; photoluminescence

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