Growth of highly oriented crystalline polyaniline films by self-organization

Silicon substrates with (100) orientation were modified with amino-silane self-assembled monolayer (SAM) to provide amino (NH(2)) moieties at the substrate surface. Self-organization of polyaniline during chemical polymerization, on this modified surface, leads to the growth of highly oriented films at the substrate-polymer interface. The morphology studied using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy revealed the formation of polymer film with well faceted pyramidal crystallites. XPS and FTIR spectroscopy were used to analyze the chemical structure of the film. X-ray diffraction measurements show the crystalline nature of the polyaniline, whose lattice parameters are in agreement with the reported values. This study underlines the importance of a SAM in deciding the structure and morphology of the deposited polymer.     

Air-assisted high-performance field-effect transistor with thin films of picene

A field-effect transistor (FET) with thin films of picene has been fabricated on SiO2 gate dielectric. The FET showed p-channel enhancement-type FET characteristics with the field-effect mobility, mu, of 1.1 cm2 V-1 s-1 and the on-off ratio of >10(5). This excellent device performance was realized under atmospheric conditions. The mu increased with an increase in temperature, and the FET performance was improved by exposure to air or O2 for a long time. This result implies that this device is an air (O2)-assisted FET. The FET characteristics are discussed on the basis of structural topography and the energy diagram of picene thin films.     

Effect of copolymerization on the crystalline structure of polyacrylonitrile

X-ray diffraction of polyacrylonitrile (PAN), poly-2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (poly-HEMA) and their random copolymers containing low proportions of HEMA has been carried out in order to investigate the changes in the PAN structure produced by introducing some HEMA units into the chain. Both crystalline and amorphous phases were distinguishable in PAN and the copolymers. Considerable decrease in crystallinity on copolymerization was found, but not showing any quantitative relationship with the HEMA content. The crystalline lattice in the copolymers remained similar to that of PAN. A two-phase (crystalline and amorphous) structure of PAN was found more suitable to explain the results.     

Effect of the structure ofα-substituted styrenes on their electronic structure

The relationship between the experimental ionization potentials and energies of the highest occupied MO was analyzed for various conformations of styrene derivatives using the photoelectron spectra of a series of α-substituted styrenes and quantum chemical calculations of their electronic structure. The characteristics of the HOMO of the planar conformations correlate both with the ionization potentials and the reactivities of these molecules. Institute of Physical Organic and Coal Chemistry, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 70 R. Lyuksemburg St., Donetsk, Ukraine 340014, Institute of Technical and Macromolecular Chemistry, Martin Luther University, Halle Wittenberg, Merseburg, Germany D-06217. Translated from Teoreticheskaya i éksperimental’naya Khimiya, Vol. 34, No. 1, pp. 36–42, January–February, 1998.     

Effect of molecular weight on the crystalline structure of polytetrafluoroethylene as-polymerized

Melting and crystallization behavior of polytetrafluoroethylene as polymerized in emulsion and suspension is shown to depend on molecular weight. DSC heating curves for virgin PTFE with low molecular weight below 3 × 10⁵ have a single peak, whereas curves for higher molecular weight samples have double peaks. With increasing heating rate the areas of higher melting peaks become larger than the lower melting peaks. The morphology of polymer exhibiting double melting peaks is mainly folded ribbons or granular particles. The phenomenon of double melting is explained on the basis of two different crystalline states which correspond to the “fold regions” and the “linear segments” in a folded ribbon. The melting temperature of virgin PTFE is almost constant at ca. 330°C for molecular weights below 1 × 10⁶, and rises as the molecular weight increases above 1 × 10⁶. The heat of melting of virgin PTFE is nearly independent of molecular weight. On the basis of these results, we propose a model for melting and crystallization of low and high molecular weight PTFE and for the crystal structure.     

Effect of polymer-plasticizer interactions on the oxygen permeability of starch-sorbitol-water films

This study evaluated the oxygen permeability (O.P.) of starch-sorbitol-water films produced by casting. With a sorbitol content <20%, O.P. (0.15 10⁻¹⁶ cm²/s.Pa for 8.8% sorbitol) was lower than for other polymers classically used as oxygen barriers. With a sorbitol content >20%, O.P. (1.6 10⁻¹⁶ cm²/s.Pa for 24.9% sorbitol) was higher than for starch films without a plasticizer. These results were correlated with molecular mobility as determined by time-domain NMR. Low and high O.P. corresponded respectively to a decrease and an increase of molecular mobility relative to sorbitol content.     

Effect of side-chain disorder on the electronic structure of proteins

The influence of side-chain disorder on the electronic structure of proteins has been investigated in the case of polypeptides containing two or three different amino acid residues. It has been found that due to the different potentials of different side-chain groups, the original valence and conduction bands of the homopolypeptides are split into narrow bands. The comparison of the densities of electronic states in simple homopolypeptides and in composite polymers shows that new forbidden regions in the energy spectrum of proteins may develop. The consequences of these effects for the semiconductive properties of proteins are discussed.     

Tuning the crystalline and electronic structure of ZrO2 via oxygen vacancies and nano-structuring for polysulfides conversion in lithium-sulfur batteries

The recent emergence of tetragonal phases zirconium dioxide(ZrO₂) with vacancies has generated significant interest as a highly efficient and stable electrocatalyst with potential applications in trapping polysulfides and facilitating rapid conversion in lithium-sulfur batteries(LSBs). However, the reduction of ZrO₂ is challenging, even under strong reducing atmospheres at high temperatures and pressures.Consequently, the limited presence of oxygen vacancies results in insu...     

Effects of potassium on the supramolecular structure and electronic properties of eumelanin thin films

The role of potassium in the formation of synthetic eumelanin aggregates is investigated by atomic force microscopy and soft-X-ray spectroscopy. Control over the thin film granularity is achieved by using K salts, in both drop casting and electrodeposition of eumelanin thin films. Further control over orientation is made possible by a suitable choice of the substrate: evidence of self-assembly is found for thin films deposited on gold. Finally, it is shown that the potassium content affects not only the samples morphology, but also the low-lying states in the valence band, where a transfer of spectral weight across the HOMO-LUMO gap is observed, disclosing possible applications of this multifunctional biomacromolecule.     

Synthesis and photocatalytic properties of highly crystalline and ordered mesoporous TiO2 thin films

Highly crystalline and ordered mesoporous TiO2 thin films have been synthesized by stabilization of the mesostructure with confined carbon; the films exhibit 2.5% photoconversion efficiency for the water photolysis at zero-bias and Xe lamp illumination of 40 mW cm(-2).     

Ab initio study of the electronic structure of the crystalline high-mobility organic semiconductor 1,4-diiodobenzene

We use ab initio crystalline calculations to explore the role of iodine in determining the properties of 1,4-diiodobenzene. The results strongly suggest that the large halogen is an important or perhaps the dominant determinant of the ability of diiodobenzene to transport holes. We conjecture that the high mobility of diiodobenzene is due to a combination of electronic and phononic effects, both influenced by the presence of the iodine.     

Effect of oxygen vacancies in anodic titanium oxide films on the kinetics of the oxygen electrode reaction

The effect of oxygen vacancies in the anodic oxide film on passive titanium on the kinetics of the oxygen electrode reaction has been studied by potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Oxide films of different donor density were prepared galvanostatically at various current densities until a potential of 20.0 V_SHE was achieved. The semiconductive properties of the oxide films were characterized using EIS and Mott-Schottky analysis, and the thickness was measured using ellipsometry. The film thickness was found to be almost constant at ∼44.7 ± 2.0 nm, but Mott-Schottky analysis of the measured high frequency interracial capacitance showed that the donor (oxygen vacancy) density in the n-type passive film decreased sharply with increasing oxide film formation rate (current density). Passive titanium surfaces covering a wide range of donor density were used as substrates for ascertaining relationships between the rates of oxygen reduction/evolution and the donor density. These studies show that the rates of both reactions are higher for passive films having higher donor densities. Possible explanations include enhancement of the conductivity of the film due to the vacancies facilitating charge transfer and the surface oxygen vacancies acting as catalytic sites for the reactions. The possible involvement of surface oxygen vacancies in the oxygen electrode reaction was explored by determining the kinetic order of the OER with respect to the donor concentration. The kinetic orders were found to be greater than zero, indicating that oxygen vacancies are involved as electrocatalytic reaction centers in both the oxygen evolution and reduction reactions. This paper was submitted in honor of the many contributions to electrochemistry that have been made by Professor Boris Grafov. The article is published in the original.     

Effect of structure on properties of polypyromellitimide films

Polypyromellitimides were prepared by the reaction of di(4-aminophenyl) ether (E)/di (4-aminophenyl) methane (M), and pyromellitic dianhydride in dimethylformamide, followed by thermal cyclization in a nitrogen atmosphere. Copolyimides were obtained by taking different molar ratios of diamines in the initial monomer feed. Differential scanning calorimetric, thermogravimetric analysis, and thermally stimulated current studies were carried out on these samples. It was concluded that the dielectric relaxation in these copolymers is due to trapping of the charge carriers. The dielectric relaxation parameters and activation energies were also calculated.     

Effect of terminal groups on the electronic structure of hyperbranched polyacetylene

Quantum mechanics calculations at B3LYP/6‐31G (d)//HF/3‐21G (d) level of the theory were carried out on second generation dendritic polyacetylenic oligomers bearing different terminal groups to clarify the impact of their nature on the electronic structure of hyperbranched polyacetylene. It was found that steric and electronic factors affect the electronic properties of the studied dendrimers. While the steric hindrances independently of the nature of a terminal group tend to increase band gap and ionisation potential and decrease electron affinity, the interaction of lone electron pairs and π‐electrons of the terminal groups with the rest of the molecule produces specific changes in the electronic structure of each particular group. A general feature of the studied dendrimers is that upon ionisation or addition of an electron to the dendrimer the molecules become more planar.     

Contribution of charge-transfer complexes to the structure of electronic states of dibenzotetraazaannulene in the crystalline phase

Based on analysis of the electronic absorption spectra and study of thin films, we have established the characteristic features of electronic processes involving participation of intermolecular charge transfer processes in crystalline dibenzotetraazaannulene. We have shown that the specific spectral characteristics of this compound are connected with the presence of pre-dimer pairs of molecules in the solid state.L. V. Pisarzhevskii Institute of Physical Chemistry, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, 31 Nauki Prospekt, Kiev 252039, Ukraine. Translated from Teoreticheskaya i Éksperimertal'naya Khimiya, Vol. 32, No. 3, pp. 163–167, May–June, 1996. Original article submitted July 4, 1995.     

Evolution of crystalline structure in SnS thin films prepared by chemical deposition

Crystal structure and morphology undergo significant evolution in thin films of tin(II) sulfide prepared by chemical deposition, over a narrow interval of bath temperature of 20–40 °C, but has not been recognized in previous studies. The chemical bath is constituted using tin(II) chloride, triethanolamine, ammonia(aq.) and thioacetamide. At bath temperature of 20 °C, the deposition rate of the film is 10 nm/h; and at 24 h, a film of thickness 260 nm is obtained. This film is compact and with a predominantly cubic (Cub-) crystalline structure. At 40 °C, the deposition rate is 25 nm/h, and a film of 600 nm in thickness is deposited in 24 h. However, this film has evolved into vertically stacked platelets of orthorhombic (OR-) crystalline structure. The transition from compact-to-platelet morphology as well as from Cub-to-OR-crystalline structure is observed near a deposition temperature, 35 °C. The Cub-SnS has a characteristic high optical band gap, 1.67 eV (direct gap; forbidden transitions) with an electrical conductivity, 10⁻⁷(Ω cm)⁻¹; both properties being un-affected when films are heated at 300 °C in a nitrogen ambient. In OR-SnS, the band gap is 1.1 eV (indirect gap; allowed transitions). The electrical conductivity of such films is notably higher, 10⁻⁴ (Ω cm)⁻¹, which increases further by an order of magnitude when the films have been heated at 300 °C in nitrogen.     

Efficient synthesis of plate-like crystalline hydrated tungsten trioxide thin films with highly improved electrochromic performance

Plate-like hydrated tungsten trioxide (3WO(3)·H(2)O) films were grown on a fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) coated transparent conductive substrate via an efficient, facile and template-free hydrothermal method. The film exhibited a fast coloration/bleaching response (t(c90%) = 4.3 s and t(b90%) = 1.4 s) and a high coloration efficiency (112.7 cm(2) C(-1)), which were probably due to a large surface area.     

Fabrication of highly porous and micropatterned SnO2 films by oxygen bubbles generated on the anode electrode

The fabrication process of highly porous SnO(2) thick film by reaction between tin ions and oxygen gas generated by an anodic applied potential on substrates in SnCl(2) aqueous solution is reported; moreover, we succeeded in forming porous SnO(2) micropatterns through site-selective deposition on a Pt-patterned F-doped SnO(2)(FTO) coated substrate .     

Control of molecular structure in the generation of highly luminescent liquid crystalline perylenebisimide derivatives: synthesis, liquid crystalline and photophysical properties

We report here, for the first time, the role of the molecular design on the liquid crystalline and solid-state photoluminescent properties of soluble and thermally stable liquid crystalline perylenebisimide derivatives. A new series of perylenebisimides were designed and developed for this purpose by adopting the stoichiometry-control approach, and amine-, hydroxyl-, ester-, and amide-functionalized molecules were synthesized. Various types of spacers with different lengths (C(2) to C(12)), types (linear, cyclohexyl, and tricyclodecane), and end-capped by phenyl or tridodecyloxy gallic units were introduced in the perylenebisimide core. The molecules were completely characterized by NMR, FT-IR, SEC, and MALDI-TOF mass techniques. Thermal analysis revealed that the perylenebisimide derivatives were thermotropic liquid crystalline, and threadlike nematic phases were observed under a polarizing light microscope. The spacer length and the rigidity of the spacers play a major role in the liquid crystalline properties of the materials. In phenyl systems, the C(6) chain with ester- and the C(12) chain with amide-end-capped molecules showed a nematic phase, whereas the C(6) chain with an amide end cap and their cyclic and tricyclic counterparts did not show any LC property. The introduction of a tridodecyloxy gallic unit induced the LC property in C(12) and the cyclohexyl system; however, it failed to do so in the tricyclodecane molecule. The absorption properties of the molecules were almost unchanged by the structural variation; however, the emission quantum yield in solution and photoluminescent (PL) intensity in the solid state were significantly different. Though the gallic unit induced liquid crystallinity in the perylenebisimide core, the quantum yield and PL intensity are 4-5 times less compared to those of the simple phenyl-capped liquid crystalline system. Among the various types of spacers, the tricyclodecane induced strong molecular aggregates via pi-stacking, which in turn increased the rigidity of the entire perylenebisimide core, resulting in the absence of liquid crystallinity and low luminescence compared to their linear and cyclohexyl analogues. The molecular aggregates were very stable even at very dilute concentration and also at high temperatures. The aggregates disappeared immediately upon addition of trifluoroacetic acid, thus confirming the strong hydrogen bonding in the aggregated states. In a nutshell, the present report demonstrates the importance of molecular design for introducing liquid crystalline phases in perylenebisimides and also the development of novel highly luminescent n-type pi-conjugated material for application in optoelectronics.