Conductive and optical properties of PPV modified by N+ ion implantation

In this article, a soluble poly[2‐methoxy‐5‐(3′‐methyl)butoxy]‐p‐phenylene vinylene (MMB‐PPV) was synthesized by dehydrochlorination reaction and the MMB‐PPV film was implanted by nitrogen ions (N⁺) with the ion dose and energy in the range of 3.8 × 10¹⁵ to 9.6 × 10¹⁶ ions/cm² and 15–35 keV, respectively. The surface conductivity, optical absorption, optical band gap (E_g) of modified MMB‐PPV film were studied, and the third‐order nonlinear optical susceptibility (χ⁽³⁾) as well as its environmental stability of modified MMB‐PPV film were also measured by degenerate four‐wave mixing system. The results showed that the surface conductivity of MMB‐PPV film was up to 3.2 × 10^?2 S when ion implantation was performed with the energy of 35 keV at an ion dose of 9.6 × 10¹⁶ ions/cm², which was seven order of magnitude higher than that of the pristine film. UV‐Vis absorption spectra demonstrated that the optical absorption of MMB‐PPV film was enhanced gradually in the visible region followed by a red shift of optical absorption threshold and the E_g value was reduced from 2.12 eV to 1.59 eV with the increase of ion dose and energy. The maximum χ⁽³⁾ value of 2.45 × 10^?8 esu for modified MMB‐PPV film was obtained with the ion energy of 20 keV at an ion dose of 3.8 × 10¹⁶ ions/cm², which was almost 33 times larger than that for pristine film. In comparison to the reduction of 17% in the χ⁽³⁾ value of pristine MMB‐PPV film, the maximum χ⁽³⁾ value of 2.45 × 10^?8 esu for modified MMB‐PPV film decreased by over 5.3% when they had been exposed under the same ambient conditions for 90 days. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 2072–2077, 2010     

Electrical properties of ion-implanted poly(p-phenylene sulfide)

Ion implantation of impurities into thin films of poly(p-phenylene sulfide) (PPS) is found to increase the conductivity of the material by up to 12 orders of magnitude. The increase is stable under exposure to ambient conditions, in contrast to the instability of the conductivity increases in PPS produced by chemical doping with AsF₅. PPS films 0.1–0.2 μm thick are spin cast from solution onto interdigitated electrodes patterned on an oxidized silicon substrate. The room-temperature interelectrode resistance is measured as a function of implantation fluence. An estimate of film conductivity is obtained from this resistance with a simple model for the electrode and film geometry. A first experiment yielded similar conductivity increases for implantation of either arsenic or krypton. At a fluence of 1 × 10¹⁶cm^?;2, which corresponds to an average impurity concentration of 2.5 × 10²¹cm^?3, the conductivity reaches an apparently saturated value of 1.5 × 10^?5 (Ω cm)^?1. Infrared spectra of the films before and after implantation suggest that crosslinking may be present in the implanted films, and Auger studies show stoichiometric changes throughout the implanted layer. These results suggest that the observed conductivity changes are the result of molecular rearrangements produced by the implantation rather than the result of specific chemical doping. Specific chemical doping may, however, explain the results of a second experiment in which implantation of bromine resulted in substantially larger conductivities found to increase at an approximate linear rate from a value of 1.0 × 10^?4 (Ω cm)^?1 at a fluence of 1 × 10¹⁶ cm^?2 to a value of 4.0 × 10^?4 (Ω cm)^?1 at a fluence of 3.16 × 10¹⁶ cm^?2.     

Photoinitiated thermolysis of poly(phenylenevinylene) precursor and photochemical doping of poly(phenylenevinylene)

The photoinitiated elimination of methoxy groups of poly(p-phenylene-1-methoxyethylene) and the photochemical doping of the resulting poly(phenylenevinylene) (PPV) were investigated. Upon irradiation and then heat treatment at 150°C, poly(p-phenylene-1-methoxyethylene) containing triphenylsulfonium hexafluoroantimonate was converted to PPV. The resulting PPV was observed to be conductive, and its conductivity was 10⁻²–10⁻³ S/cm. By a lithographic procedure, we produced a conducting pattern doped photochemically in a nonconjugated poly(p-phenylene-1-methoxyethylene) matrix.     

UV cured transparent films including non‐aqueous conductive microgels

UV cured transparent films containing non‐aqueous conductive microgels coated with poly(aniline)/dodecyl benzenesulfonic acid(DBSA) were obtained. The conductive microgels were prepared by interface polymerization of aniline/DBSA in the presence of non‐aqueous polymeric microgels. The electrical conductivity and the particle size of the prepared conductive microgel were 0.5 S/cm and 58 nm, respectively. The prepared conductive microgels were easily blended with a UV curable coating formulation, and then were cured to make highly optically transparent films. For the UV cured film containing about 35 wt% of the conductive microgels, a surface resistance in the range of 10⁷ to 10⁸ Ω/square was obtained. In a polar cosolvent, such as NMP and m‐cresol, the critical volume was shifted to the lower range, with a value of 10 wt%. The UV cured films containing the conductive microgels exhibited good electrical stability against the thermal aging and humidity. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Partially graphitized ordered mesoporous carbons for high-rate supercapacitors

Partially graphitized ordered mesoporous carbons have been prepared with a soft template method using low-molecular-weight phenolic resol as a carbon source, triblock copolymer F127 as a template, and ferric citrate as a graphitization catalyst. N₂ sorption and transmission electron microscopy analysis show that the ordered mesoporous carbons have been partially graphitized when the carbonization temperature is above 700 °C. The graphitic ordered mesoporous carbons exhibit better rate performance than amorphous ordered mesoporous carbons. The specific capacitance of the graphitic ordered mesoporous carbons (GOMCs) prepared at 700 °C reaches to 112 F g^?1 at a scan rate of up to 1,000 mV s^?1. Its capacitance retention ratio is 64 %, which is much higher than that of the amorphous ordered mesoporous carbons prepared at 600 °C (33 %). High electronic conductivity and ordered mesoporous structure lead to the high electrochemical performance of the partially graphitized ordered mesoporous carbons.     

Free-ionic polymerization of isobutyl vinyl ether by radiation

Radiation-induced free-ionic polymerization of isobutyl vinyl ether in bulk system has been studied by dilatometry and electrical conductivity measurement. Some refinements in kinetic treatment of estimate the propagation rate constant k_p from the rate of polymerization and steady-state conductivity were attempted. Polymerization of superdried monomer which gave a half-power dose-rate dependence of R_p was carried out at 0, 25, and 50°C. The k_p value obtained at 25°C and an activation energy for propagation were estimated as 1.2 ± 0.4 × 10⁵ I./mole-sec and 9.6 ± 2.8 kcal/mole, respectively. In isobutyl vinyl ether, a propagation reaction in free-ionic mechanism was found to be characterized with a high frequency factor and presumably higher activation energy, compared with ion-pair mechanism. Discussions were also made as to several contrasting behaviors between the polymerization of alkyl vinyl ethers and other vinyl monomers as styrene both in free-ion and ion-pair mechanisms.     

Direct Electrochemistry and Electrocatalysis of Hemoglobin/ZnO‐Chitosan/nano‐Au Modified Glassy Carbon Electrode

The highly efficient H₂O₂ biosensor was fabricated on the basis of the complex films of hemoglobin (Hb), nano ZnO, chitosan (CHIT) dispersed solution and nano Au immobilized on glassy carbon electrode (GCE). Biocompatible ZnO‐CHIT composition provided a suitable microenvironment to keep Hb bioactivity (Michaelis‐Menten constant of 0.075 mmol L^?1). The presence of nano Au in matrix could effectively enhance electron transfer between Hb and electrode. The electrochemical behaviors and effects of solution pH values were carefully examined in this paper. The (ZnO‐CHIT)‐Au‐Hb/GCE demonstrated excellently electrocatalytical ability for H₂O₂. This biosensor had a fast response to H₂O₂ less than 4 s and excellent linear relationships were obtained in the concentration range from1.94×10^?7 to 1.73×10^?3 mol L^?1 with the detection limit of 9.7×10^?8 mol L^?1 (S/N=3) under the optimum conditions. Moreover, the stability and reproducibility of this biosensor were evaluated with satisfactory results.     

Grain boundary diffusion coefficients in gold–nickel thin films

Polycrystalline gold–nickel thin films are deposited on silicon (111) wafers by evaporation in a vacuum of 2 × 10^?6 mbar. Concentration profiles of heat‐treated specimens are obtained by Auger electron depth profiling. The heat treatments are carried out in a vacuum furnace of 4 × 10^?6 mbar in the temperature interval 473–773 K. The grain boundary diffusion coefficient is determined, using a modified Wipple model, to be (3 × 10^?4 cm² s^?1) exp (?0.94 eV kT^?1). It is concluded that interdiffusion in the investigated system is characterized by type B kinetics, and that grain boundary diffusion plays a dominant role in the mass transport process of such films. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of sputtering current on the bonding structure and mechanical properties of diamond‐like carbon films deposited by MFPUMST

Diamond‐like carbon (DLC) films on glass wafers were produced by middle frequency pulsed unbalanced magnetron sputtering technique (MFPUMST) at different sputtering current. The chemical bonding of carbon characterized by Raman spectroscopy and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) show that the sp³ fraction in DLC films increases with increasing sputtering current from 100 to 300 mA, and then decreases above 300 mA. Mechanical properties like nano‐hardness and elastic recovery for these films under different sputtering currents analyzed by a nano‐indentation technique show the same tendency that nano‐hardness and elastic recovery increase with increasing sputtering current from 100 to 300 mA, and then decrease with increasing sputtering current from 300 to 400 mA. These results indicate that the sp³ fraction in the prepared DLC films is directly related to nano‐hardness and elastic recovery. The results shown above indicate that the parameter of the preparation—sputtering current has a strong influence on the bonding configuration of the deposited DLC films. The mechanism of sputtering current on the sp³ fraction is discussed in this paper. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Conformation and luminescence characteristics of nanopoly[2‐metoxy‐5‐(2′‐ethyl‐hexyloxy)‐p‐phenylene vinylene] in two‐dimensional arrays

With anodic alumina with an ordered nanopore array used as a template, poly[2‐metoxy‐5‐(2′‐ethyl‐hexyloxy)‐p‐phenylene vinylene] (MEH–PPV) was embedded into the nanopores, and then two‐dimensional arrays of light‐emitting nanopolymers were prepared. By the measurement and analysis of photoluminescence and photoluminescence excitation spectra of the samples, it was demonstrated that the optical properties of the nano‐MEH–PPV arrays were obviously different from those of MEH–PPV films. The conformations of the MEH–PPV chains in the nanopores, films, and solutions and their effects on the optical properties were examined. It was determined experimentally that the conformations of the MEH–PPV chains in the solutions were maintained in the nano‐MEH–PPV arrays. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 3037–3041, 2006     

Synthesis and Characterization of Pyridine-Based Benzoxazines and Their Carbons

Novel benzoxazines were synthesized to prepare nitrogen-doped carbons with high nitrogen content. Monomers (2pd, 3pd) were successfully synthesized from aminopyridine, orth-hydroxybenzaldehyde and paraformaldehyde. Their chemical structures were confirmed via Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ¹H-NMR and ¹³C-NMR. The thermogravimetric analysis and elemental analysis results demonstrated that the cured benzoxazines had high char yield and their carbides had high nitrogen content. The nitrogen configurations of the carbons obtained from pyridine-based benzoxazines were pyridinic N, pyrrolic N and graphitic N, which were the active centers in nitrogen-doped carbons. We believe that these pyridine-based benzoxazines will be applied as the precursors for functional carbon materials in many fields such as hydrogen storage, fuel cell and supercapacitor.     

Conducting polyaniline‐coated nano silica by in situ chemical oxidative grafting polymerization

Polyaniline (PAni) grafted nano silica were synthesized successfully by in situ polymerization of aniline (An) using ammonium persulphate (APS) as oxidant by three procedures: Firstly, γ‐(2,3‐epoxypropoxy)propyltrimethoxysilane (EPTMS) reacted with nano silica. Secondly, the EPTMS modified nano silica reacted with An as an initiator site introduced onto the silica surface, and finally PAni grafted silica was obtained by in situ chemical oxidative An. The chemical grafting of PAni was confirmed by FTIR and UV–Vis. The percentages of grafting EPTMS and An onto nano silica were 24.5 wt% and 10.3 wt%, respectively, calculated from elemental analysis (EA), while the percentage of grafting PAni was 157.7 wt% as a mass ratio of the grafting PAni and charged nano silica, investigated by TGA. In addition, characteristic agglomerate morphology of PAni was observed in the composite by SEM. The electrical conductivity of the product was 2.6 × 10^?6 S cm^?1 and it manifested that the resulted product was a typical semiconductor. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Engineered Molecular Chain Ordering in Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes/Polyaniline Composite Films for High‐Performance Organic Thermoelectric Materials

Single‐walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs)/polyaniline (PANI) composite films with enhanced thermoelectric properties were prepared by combining in situ polymerization and solution processing. Conductive atomic force microscopy and X‐ray diffraction measurements confirmed that solution processing and strong π–π interactions between the PANI and SWNTs induced the PANI molecules to form a highly ordered structure. The improved degree of order of the PANI molecular arrangement increased the carrier mobility and thereby enhanced the electrical transport properties of PANI. The maximum in‐plane electrical conductivity and power factor of the SWNTs/PANI composite films reached 1.44×10³ S cm^?1 and 217 μW m^?1 K^?2, respectively, at room temperature. Furthermore, a thermoelectric generator fabricated with the SWNTs/PANI composite films showed good electric generation ability and stability. A high power density of 10.4 μW cm^?2 K^?1 was obtained, which is superior to most reported results obtained in organic thermoelectric modules.     

Novel route to poly(p‐phenylene vinylene) polymers

Poly(p‐phenylene vinylene) (PPV), poly(2,5‐dioctyl‐p‐phenylene vinylene) (PDOPPV), and poly[2‐methoxy‐5‐(2′‐ethylhexyloxy)‐p‐phenylene vinylene] (MEHPPV) were synthesized by a liquid–solid two‐phase reaction. The liquid phase was tetrahydrofuran containing 1,4‐bis(bromomethyl)benzene, 1,4‐bis(chloromethyl)‐2,5‐dioctylbenzene, or 1,4‐bis(chloromethyl)‐2‐methoxyl‐5‐(2′‐ethylhexyloxy)benzene as the monomer and a certain amount of tetrabutylammonium bromide as a phase‐transfer catalyst. The solid phase consisted of potassium hydroxide particles with diameters smaller than 2 mm. The experimental results demonstrated that the reaction conversions of PPV and PDOPPV were fairly high (～65%), but the conversion of MEHPPV was only 45%. Moreover, gelation was found in the polymerization processes. As a result, PPV was insoluble and PDOPPV and MEHPPV were partially soluble in the usual organic solvents, such as tetrahydrofuran and chloroform. Soluble PDOPPV and MEHPPV were obtained with chloromethylbenzene or bromomethylbenzene as a retardant regent. The molar mass of soluble PDOPPV was measured to be 2 × 10⁴ g mol^?1, and that of MEHPPV was 6 × 10⁴ g mol^?1. A thin, compact film of MEHPPV was formed via spin coating, and it emitted a yellow light. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 449–455, 2003     

Properties of polyphenylene films deposited electrochemically in an HF-benzene system

Free-standing polyphenylene films, prepared by the electrochemical oxidation of benzene in an HF-benzene, two-phase system, were investigated. From electron microscope pictures, x-ray diffraction patterns, and infrared (IR) spectra of polyphenylene films and commercial polyphenylene powder it is concluded that the films, which are largely para linked, contain in addition a substantial amount of meta and possibly ortho linkages and are amorphous in nature. Doping with AsF₅ increases the electrical conductivity of the otherwise insulating films to 10^?4?10^?2ohm^?1cm^?1; doped films are relatively stable in air. The lower conductivity of doped films with respect to reported values for chemically synthesized poly-p-phenylene appears to be the result of the amorphous nature of the films.     

Structural and electrical characterisation of betaine-type,organic, molecular,thin evaporated films and LB multilayers

The structure and electrical properties of highly polar indandione-1,3 pyridinium betaine (IPB) derivatives have been studied in vacuum-evaporated thin films and Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) multilayer assemblies. Phase transitions induced by temperature and/or electric field have been observed in LB films of an amphiphilic derivative of IPB.The LB films of IPB, obtained at room temperature, form a Y-like structure which melts at about 50 °C to produce spherical domains, having Z-like structure, which remain stable up to 110 °C. Similar phase transitions can be induced by an electric field with ε ≥ 2 × 10⁵ V cm⁻¹ at room temperature. In the new Z-like phase of the IPB LB films, the electrical conductivity increases by some five or six orders of magnitude and the activation energy of dark conductivity decreases from 0.18 ± 0.03 eV to practically zero.The vacuum-evaporated IPB films yield low electrical conductivity (σ = 10⁻¹⁵–10⁻¹⁶S cm⁻¹), whereas in the LB multilayers a notable anisotropy of conductivity is observed. In case of coplanar cells the conductivity increases to σ = 10⁻⁸S cm⁻¹. In sandwich-type LB samples the conductivity value is similar to that of the vacuum-evaporated polycrystalline thin films.     

Kinetics of polymerization of N-tert-butylacrylamide. Part II

The effect of ferric chloride on the kinetics of the radical polymerization of N-tert-butylacrylamide has been investigated in methanol solution at 25°C, with the use of 4,4′-dicyano-4,4′-azodipentanoic acid as initiator. A shrinkage factor of 0.193 mmole polymerized for 1 mm contraction in a capillary of 1 mm diameter has been obtained from density measurements. In the absence of ferric chloride, rates of polymerization were found to be proportional to the concentration of monomer and to the square root of the initiator concentration. With ferric chloride present, the rate of polymerization becomes directly proportional to the initiator concentration and inversely proportional to the concentration of ferric salt. From measurements of the rates of production of ferrous iron, the specific rate constant of the initiation reaction has been found to be (1.8 ± 0.4) × 10^?6sec^?1 at 25°C, compared with a value of 7.63 × 10^?8 sec^?1 calculated from the kinetic data obtained with no ferric salt present. The value of the ratio k_p/k₄. where k_p is the propagation coefficient and k₄ is the velocity coefficient for termination by ferric chloride, has been calculated to be 6.0 × 10^?4 at 25°C, which is considerably smaller than the value found for the ferric chloride-terminated polymerization of acrylamide in water. This markedly lower value of k_p/k₄ has been attributed principally to the steric effect of the tert-butyl group on the magnitude of k_p.     

Structure and electric conductivity of vapor deposition polymerization products of cyanoacetylene

Cyanoacetylene can be polymerized from the vapor state onto an inactive surface of substrate at a temperature as low as 200°C. The polymerization first occurs by way of the carbon–carbon triple bond. The reaction product obtained at 1000°C contains nitrogen at a concentration as high as 13.7%. At least some of this nitrogen is in naphtiridine ring or rings similar to it. The product obtained at 400°C is amorphous, while the product obtained at 1000°C has at least partly graphite-like crystalline structures with an apparent crystallite size (L_c) of about 17 Å. The electric conductivities of the products obtained at 400, 700, and 1000°C are 7.7 × 10^?2, 91, and 1600 S/cm, respectively. These values are extremely high compared to the pyrolized PAN treated at the same temperature. Electric conductivity of the product obtained at 400°C is well explained by the variable range hopping model in 3-dimensional amorphous materials. With the products obtained at the higher temperatures, conductivity cannot be accounted for by the hopping model. This is probably due to the development of graphite-like structure.     

Surface characterization of ion-implanted polyethylene

Polyethylene (PE) film was implanted with 1000-keV Ar⁺ ions to a fluence of 5 × 10¹⁴ ions/cm² under high vacuum conditions (2.5 × 10⁻⁶ torr) and the film surface was investigated by means of microhardness and microwear measurements, and FTIR/ATR, Raman, and XPS techniques. Ion implantation significantly increased the subsurface hardness and also significantly improved the microwear resistance of the polymer. The implanted surface region of the film was found to consist of two distinct layers. One was the outermost carbon layer with a thickness of the order of 10 nm. In this layer, ca. 75% of carbon atoms were combined by graphitic sp² and diamond-like sp³ bonds, and the remaining 25% had chemical links with oxygen atoms. Spectroscopic data suggested that the sp²-bonded carbons segregated in graphite-like clusters containing imbedded oxygen atoms, interconnected by the sp³-bonded carbons. The other was the subsurface layer resulting from PE oxidation after ion-beam treatment. This layer was characterized by high contents of O H and CO groups as well as ester and double bonds. The chemical composition of the layer was uniform and did not vary over the layer thickness of about 1.4 μm. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 36: 715–725, 1998     

Disiloxane-Bridged Cyclopolymer as Polymer Dielectrics

We studied the dielectric properties of organosilicon-containing helical cyclopolymer PbMA which consists of PMMA main chains and tetramethyldisiloxane side rings. PbMA formed films with excellent uniformity through spin-coating onto highly n-doped silicon (n-Si) wafers for constructing devices of dielectric measurements, on which the dielectric properties and I-V characteristics of PbMA were studied. PbMA has a much lower dielectric constant (lower than 2.6) in the frequency range of 10-10⁵ Hz, and better thermal stability than PMMA does. I-V data showed that the metal/PbMA/n-Si devices have different conducting directions, depending on whether Au or Al deposited over PbMA layers.