Skip to main content
OSTI.GOVU.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information
 

Tuning Metastability of Poly(3-hexyl thiophene) Solutions to Enable in Situ Atomic Force Microscopy Imaging of Surface Nucleation

Journal Article · · Macromolecules
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [2];  [2]
  1. Univ. of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA (United States); University of Massachusetts Amherst
  2. Univ. of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA (United States)
  3. Oxford Instruments Asylum Research, Santa Barbara, CA (United States)
+ Show Author Affiliations
Poly(3-hexyl thiophene) (P3HT), a workhorse material for the study of organic electronic devices, assembles into nanofibers (NFs) upon crystallization from solution, providing the means to tailor morphology and improve device performance. We investigate how P3HT regioregularity, molecular weight, and concentration influence the hysteresis between crystallization and melting temperatures of NFs. Hysteresis is found to increase with molecular weight and reach an asymptote for polymer chains above the chain folding threshold (Mn > 12 kg/mol). Regioregularity does not substantially affect the hysteresis above a level of 88%, while increasing polymer concentration is found to reduce hysteresis. This insight facilitates in situ high-resolution atomic force microscopy measurements that provide better understanding of the mechanism of NF crystallization on graphite. We find an interchain distance (along the a crystallographic axis) of 16.7 ± 0.7 Å, and a spacing of 7.7 ± 0.2 Å along the c axis, suggesting that the crystals on graphite are form I.
Research Organization:
Univ. of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0016208
OSTI ID:
1599593
Journal Information:
Macromolecules, Journal Name: Macromolecules Journal Issue: 20 Vol. 52; ISSN 0024-9297
Publisher:
American Chemical SocietyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

Structural Transitions of Nanocrystalline Domains in Regioregular Poly(3-hexyl thiophene) Thin Films
Journal Article · Sun Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 2006 · Journal of Polymer Science Part B: Polymer Physics · OSTI ID:929870
Helical Poly(5-alkyl-2,3-thiophene)s: Controlled Synthesis and Structure Characterization
Journal Article · Mon Jul 11 20:00:00 EDT 2016 · Macromolecules · OSTI ID:1265664
Solubility-Driven Thin Film Structures of Regioregular Poly(3-hexyl thiophene) using Volatile Solvents
Journal Article · Mon Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 2007 · Applied Physics Letters · OSTI ID:959627

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE