Interplay between synthetic conditions and micromorphology in poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):tosylate (PEDOT:Tos): an atomistic investigation

A systematic analysis was performed to elucidate the role played by proton scavengers in PEDOT chain length distribution and micromorphology.

Highly elastic and flexible transparent conductive films derived from latex copolymerization: P(SSNa-BA-St)/PEDOT/graphene

We reported an transparent, water resistant, and flexible conductive materials P(SSNa-BA-St)/PEDOT/graphene and their conductivity are due to the large surface area to polymerize the extended PEDOT chain on the nanoparticles.

Investigation of the Thermoelectric Power Factor of KOH-Treated PEDOT:PSS Dispersions for Printing Applications

This work studies the modification of commercially available dispersions of intrinsically conductive polymer PEDOT:PSS with a strong base, KOH. It is concluded that addition of base derives a dedoping of the PEDOT chain and increase Seebeck coefficient from 15 µV/K to 90 µV/K. Supportive UV-Vis-NIR spectroscopy was used for tracking the doping level of the polymer. A surface morphology study of the dedoped PEDOT:PSS films was monitored by SEM. It was shown that if KOH is used in excess with respect to the acid component of PEDOT:PSS dispersions, it segregates at the surface forming crystallites. They, however could be easily removed by methanol rinsing without destroying the sample integrity. After material modification, a dispenser-printed polymer unileg-TEG with 61 unicouples was fabricated by printing. The TEG in form of 253 mm-long stripe shows a flexible behavior. At 90 K temperature difference a resulting power output of ~ 100 nW could be measured. We suggest that the low power output is due to a high internal generator resistance.

Performance Optimization of Nanotubes Prepared by a Template Synthesis Method

PEDOT nanotubes were prepared by a template synthesis method. Based on our template, it was deduced that there are two successive processes in the formation of nanotubes. The first step is soakage of the porous templates by a polymer solution, and the second step is adsorption of free charged cationic groups and doped PEDOT onto the template surface with negative charges. XRD results showed that well orientated PEDOT chain were formed during the synthesis, moreover the arrange conductivity of molecular chains strongly affect the structures of PEDOT nanotubes. The nanotubes were measured to be about 5.5~17.6 S/cm, which is higher than that of nanotube pellet due to the high contact resistance between the adjacent nanotubes.

On the mechanism of conductivity enhancement in PEDOT/PSS film doped with sorbitol

The mechanism of conductivity enhancement in PEDOT/PSS film doped with sorbitol is investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform Raman spectroscopy (FT-RM), Atomic force microscopy (AFM), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The XRD show that the amorphous state of sorbitol-doped films is not changed and the FT-RM indicate that the main characteristic absorption peak of PEDOT shifts to red. These observations indicate that the increase in conductivity is not attributed to the crystallization behavior of PEDOT, but to the change of the resonant structure of PEDOT chain from a ‘benzoid’ to a ‘quinoid’ structure, which increase the rigidity of PEDOT chain. In addition, there is a conformational conversion of the PEDOT chains from the coil structure to expanded-coil or linear structure. These chains changes are helpful to charge transport through the PEDOT chains and conductivity enhancement of composite films. The increased inter-molecule interactions were investigated by the morphological changes of films as observed in AFM and SEM images, which further confirmed the change of the resonant structure of PEDOT chain.