Facile electrosynthesis and thermoelectric performance of electroactive free-standing polythieno[3,2-b]thiophene films

Polythieno3,2-b]thiophene (PTT) was electrosynthesized by facile anodic oxidation of thieno3,2-b]thiophene (TT) in three systems: boron trifluoride diethyl etherate (BFEE), acetonitrile (ACN), and dichloromethane solutions. The onset oxidation potential of TT in BFEE was determined to be 0.62?V vs. Ag/AgCl, which was much lower than those in ACN and dichloromethane solutions. PTT films exhibited excellent electrochemical property, high thermal stability, good redox activity, and stability. Free-standing PTT films with good mechanical property can be obtained from BFEE solution, whose structure and morphology were characterized by FT-IR, UV?Cvisible spectra, and scanning electron microscopy. With an electrical conductivity of 1.5?S?cm^?1 and a Seebeck coefficient of 85???V?K^?1 at 306?K, the as-prepared free-standing PTT films showed a certain thermoelectric property. The dimensionless figure-of-merit of PTT films was estimated to be 2.3?×?10^?3 at 306?K, which was much higher than those of some organic thermoelectric materials reported previously. All these results indicated that PTT films may have potential applications in the thermoelectric field.