Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) Heterogeneity: A Differential Cyclic Voltabsorptometry Study

A voltabsorptometry study of the redox behavior of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) films in tetrabutylammonium tetrafluoroborate solutions in acetonitrile shows the polymer to exhibit heterogeneous properties when both reduced and oxidized. The measurements are taken at characteristic wavelengths selected on the basis of stationary absorption spectra. The reduced polymer's heterogeneity is explained under the assumption that the polymer contains simultaneously linear ( = 530 nm) and spiral ( = 660 nm) structures. The formation of two oxidized polymer states is proved experimentally. Both states presumably result from strong ( = 880 nm) and weak ( = 1050 nm) interactions between the anion and the positively charged polymer chain. The oxidized 880-nm state is shown to arise from the 660-nm state, whereas the 1050-nm state forms of the 530-nm state.