Effects of Heat Treatment on the Crystallization Behavior of Poly(3-alkylthiophenes)

Introduction Poly(3-alkylthiophenes) (P3ATs), as a new kind of soluble, fusible and processable conductive polymers, have attracted a great interest and much attention of chemists and physicists1,2]. It has been widely accepted that P3ATs can form similar layered structures with alkyl side chains being oriented in the lateral a-axis direction3-6]. Moreover, when the number of the carbon atoms in the alkyl side chains is more than 10, some orderly arrangements of the side chains will occur between the layers4].