Barkha Singh1,Rohan Bahadur1,Mayuri Gandhi1,Rohit Srivastava1
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay1
Barkha Singh1,Rohan Bahadur1,Mayuri Gandhi1,Rohit Srivastava1
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay1
MXene is one of the most exciting 2D materials currently, which has incredible potential in various applications. In this work, we report Polyethyleneimine (PEI) conjugated MXene nanosheets, which are cationic in nature. PEI_Ti<sub>3</sub>C<sub>2</sub>T<sub>x</sub> (PEI_MX) was produced by etching Ti<sub>3</sub>AlC<sub>2</sub>, ultrasonicated along with PEI, and then hydrothermally treated at 200 <sup>0</sup>C for 24 hours. PEI is a positively charged polymer containing repeating amine groups. The as-obtained nanosheets were characterized through XRD, AFM, TEM, FIR, UV-vis, and PL spectroscopy. The thickness of PEI conjugated nanosheet was found to be 2.63±0.85 nm compared to the thickness of non-conjugated control Ti<sub>3</sub>C<sub>2</sub> which was found to be 6.82±1.66 nm, proving its utilization both as a surfactant as well as a functionalizing agent. The use of polymer also assists in forming a stable aqueous dispersion. The small-sized nanosheets were found to be highly biocompatible and exhibited blue fluorescence. The photoluminescence of the 2D nanosheets enables them to be also utilized as cell labeling probes. The PEI_MX are highly scalable and possess intrinsic NIR activity, fluorescence, small size, and cationic character which can be applied for a variety of applications like cell imaging and photothermal therapy.