Semiconducting behavior of polyphenylene sulfide doped with ferric chloride

The electrical conductivity of polyphenylene sulfide doped with ferric chloride using various solvents has been studied as a function of dopant concentration, temperature, etc. The conductivity (a) was found to increase by almost 10 orders of magnitude by using certain doping media and the the concentration (σ) dependence followed a power law of the type σ α cⁿ where n has a value between 5.5 and 6.0. The temperature dependence of conductivity revealed two distinct regions with the activation energy having low (0.3-0.5 eV) and high (1.5-2.5 eV) values, respectively. The x-ray diffraction studies show no major changes in the crystalline structure/crystallinity even at high doping levels. These various findings have been explained on the basis of preferential diffusion of the dopant in the amorphous regions and the formation of a two-phase system.