Conductive polymer

About: Conductive polymer is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 21817 publications have been published within this topic receiving 692491 citations. The topic is also known as: intrinsically conducting polymer & ICP.

Poly(3-hexylthiophene) Nanorods with Aligned Chain Orientation for Organic Photovoltaics

Abstract: A structured polymer solar cell architecture featuring a large interface between donor and acceptor with connecting paths to the respective electrodes is explored. To this end, poly-(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) nanorods oriented perpendicularly to indium tin oxide (ITO) glass are fabricated using an anodic aluminum oxide template. It is found that the P3HT chains in bulk films or nanorods are oriented differently; perpendicular or parallel to the ITO substrate, respectively. Such chain alignment of the P3HT nanorods enhanced the electrical conductivity up to tenfold compared with planar P3HT films. Furthermore, the donor/acceptor contact area could be maximised using P3HT nanorods as donor and C60 as acceptor. In a photovoltaic device employing this structure, remarkable photoluminescence quenching (88%) and a seven-fold efficiency increase (relative to a device with a planar bilayer) are achieved.

Flash welding of conducting polymer nanofibers

Abstract: The welding of certain polymeric nanofibers can be accomplished by exposure to an intense short burst of light, such as is provided by a camera flash, resulting in an instantaneous melting of the exposed fibers and a welding of the fibers where they are in contact. The preferred nanofibers are composed of conjugated, conducting polymers, and derivatives and polymer blends including such materials. Alternatively, the nanofibers can be composed of colored thermoplastic polymeric fibers or opaque polymers by proper selection of the frequency or frequency range and intensity (power) of the light source. The flash welding process can also be used to weld nanofibers which comprise a blend of polymeric materials where at least one of the materials in the blend used to form the nanofiber is a conductive, conjugated polymer or a suitable colored thermoplastic. Alternatively the material blend used to form the nanofibers may comprise a polymeric material containing a colored additive, which is not necessarily a polymer, for example carbon black, or a colored nano-particulate organic or inorganic material, dye or pigment.

Conductive polymer nanocomposites: a critical review of modern advanced devices

Abstract: As a unique group of advanced polymer-based materials, conductive polymer nanocomposites combining the flexibility and/or conductivity of the polymer with the distinct properties of nanofillers have found many intriguing applications in various modern devices. This review provides a concise yet inclusive introduction to the concept of conductive polymer nanocomposites backed by some modern technologically advanced devices resulting from the advances made in this area. The most commonly adopted preparation strategies are first summarized, which mainly include direct mixing/blending (ex situ) and in situ methods (in situ polymerization or nanostructure synthesis). Selective examples of device applications are then detailed including organic light emission diodes (OLEDs), photovoltaics (PV), electrochromic devices (ECDs) and others. Lastly, concluding remarks and future perspectives are given for conductive polymer nanocomposites as viable electronic integration tools.

Highly Conductive Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):Poly (styrenesulfonate) Films Using 1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium Tetracyanoborate Ionic Liquid

Abstract: Highly conductive poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) films are obtained using ionic liquids as additives. Upon adding 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetracyanoborate (EMIM TCB) to the conducting polymer, the conductivity increases to 2084 S cm−1; this is attributed to the phase separation of PSS leading to a structural change in the film. A comparative study with 1-butyl-3-methyl imidazolium tetrafluoroborate (BMIM BF4) shows that EMIM TCB gives higher conductivity and transmittance and can be regarded as one of the most promising additives for the preparation of indium tin oxide (ITO)-free organic devices using PEDOT:PSS/EMIM TCB as electrodes.

Incorporating Graphitic Carbon Nitride (g‐C3N4) Quantum Dots into Bulk‐Heterojunction Polymer Solar Cells Leads to Efficiency Enhancement

Abstract: Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) has been commonly used as photocatalyst with promising applications in visible-light photocatalytic water-splitting. Rare studies are reported in applying g-C3N4 in polymer solar cells. Here g-C3N4 is applied in bulk heterojunction (BHJ) polymer solar cells (PSCs) for the first time by doping solution-processable g-C3N4 quantum dots (C3N4 QDs) in the active layer, leading to a dramatic efficiency enhancement. Upon C3N4 QDs doping, power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of the inverted BHJ-PSC devices based on different active layers including poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl):[6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PC61BM), poly(4,8-bis-alkyloxybenzo(l,2-b:4,5-b′)dithiophene-2,6-diylalt-(alkyl thieno(3,4-b)thiophene-2-carboxylate)-2,6-diyl):[6,6]-phenyl C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PBDTTT-C:PC71BM), and poly[4,8-bis(5-(2-ethylhexyl)thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b′]dithiophene-co-3-fluorothieno [3,4-b]thiophene-2-carboxylate] (PTB7-Th):PC71BM reach 4.23%, 6.36%, and 9.18%, which are enhanced by ≈17.5%, 11.6%, and 11.8%, respectively, compared to that of the reference (undoped) devices. The PCE enhancement of the C3N4 QDs doped BHJ-PSC device is found to be primarily attributed to the increase of short-circuit current (Jsc), and this is confirmed by external quantum efficiency (EQE) measurements. The effects of C3N4 QDs on the surface morphology, optical absorption and photoluminescence (PL) properties of the active layer film as well as the charge transport property of the device are investigated, revealing that the efficiency enhancement of the BHJ-PSC devices upon C3N4 QDs doping is due to the conjunct effects including the improved interfacial contact between the active layer and the hole transport layer due to the increase of the roughness of the active layer film, the facilitated photoinduced electron transfer from the conducting polymer donor to fullerene acceptor, the improved conductivity of the active layer, and the improved charge (hole and electron) transport.