The Effect of Alkyl Spacers on the Mixed Ionic‐Electronic Conduction Properties of N‐Type Polymers
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- Department of Chemistry and Centre for Plastic Electronics Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK
- Department of Biomedical Engineering Northwestern University Evanston IL 60208 USA
- Organic Bioelectronics Laboratory, Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Thuwal 23955‐6900 Saudi Arabia
- KAUST Solar Center King Abdulla University of Science and Technology Thuwal 23955‐6900 Saudi Arabia
- Department of Biomedical Engineering Northwestern University Evanston IL 60208 USA, Simpson Querrey Institute Northwestern University Chicago IL 60611 USA
- KAUST Solar Center King Abdulla University of Science and Technology Thuwal 23955‐6900 Saudi Arabia, Department of Chemistry Chemistry Research Laboratory University of Oxford Oxford OX1 3TA UK
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering Stanford University Stanford CA 94305 USA
Abstract Conjugated polymers with mixed ionic and electronic transport are essential for developing the complexity and function of electrochemical devices. Current n‐type materials have a narrow scope and low performance compared with their p‐type counterparts, requiring new molecular design strategies. This work presents two naphthalene diimide‐bithiophene (NDI‐T2) copolymers functionalized with hybrid alkyl‐glycol side chains, where the naphthalene diimide unit is segregated from the ethylene glycol (EG) units within the side chain by an alkyl spacer. Introduction of hydrophobic propyl and hexyl spacers is investigated as a strategy to minimize detrimental swelling close to the conjugated backbone and balance the mixed conduction properties of n‐type materials in aqueous electrolytes. It is found that both polymers functionalized with alkyl spacers outperform their analogue bearing EG‐only side chains in organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs). The presence of the alkyl spacers also leads to remarkable stability in OECTs, with no decrease in the ON current after 2 h of operation. Through this versatile side chain modification, this work provides a greater understanding of the structure‐property relationships required for n‐type OECT materials operating in aqueous media.
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- OSTI ID:
- 1761236
- Alternate ID(s):
- OSTI ID: 1785776
- Journal Information:
- Advanced Functional Materials, Journal Name: Advanced Functional Materials Vol. 31 Journal Issue: 14; ISSN 1616-301X
- Publisher:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)Copyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- Germany
- Language:
- English
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