Huang JH, Yang CY, Hsu CY, Chen CL, Lin LY, Wang RR, Ho KC, Chu CW. Solvent-annealing-induced self-organization of poly(3-hexylthiophene), a high-performance electrochromic material.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2009;
1:2821-8. [PMID:
20356162 DOI:
10.1021/am900573q]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
We have systematically studied the self-organization of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT), an electrochromic material, upon control of the solvent evaporation rate. We characterized these polymer films using atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements. Well-ordered P3HT structures were developed after solvent annealing; these highly crystalline structures exhibited enhanced electrochromic contrast and reduced resistance within the film, leading to larger coloration efficiencies and faster switching times. The optical contrast (Delta%T), coloration efficiency, and switching time of the P3HT films increased from 54.2%, 182.6 cm(2) C(-1), and 5.3 s, respectively, prior to solvent annealing to 64.8%, 293.5 cm(2) C(-1), and 3.2 s, respectively, after application of the solvent-annealing conditions.
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