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Lee TI, Kim JH, Kim DJ, Kim TS. Evaluating Free Thermal Expansion and Glass Transition of Ultrathin Polymer Films on Heated Liquid. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2024; 16:30336-30343. [PMID: 38781291 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.4c02279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
Thermomechanical properties of ultrathin films are crucial for fabrication and use of reliable thin electronic devices. Due to the lack of precise measurement techniques, the thermal deformation behavior of ultrathin films has not yet been clarified. Here, we propose a film on heated liquid (FOHL) method to simultaneously measure the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and glass transition temperature (Tg) of multiple ultrathin polymer films. Free thermal expansion of thin films without substrate interaction can be guaranteed when the thin films are afloat on a liquid surface. To investigate the thermal behavior in a wide temperature range, glycerol is adopted as a thermally stable heating platform owing to its high boiling point of 290 °C. The thin films are transferred onto the glycerol surface from the water surface using the hygroscopic properties of glycerol. Highly accurate and high-throughput thermal strain measurement is achieved using three-dimensional digital image correlation (3D-DIC). The thermomechanical properties of ultrathin polystyrene thin films of various thicknesses (25-400 nm) are precisely characterized utilizing the FOHL and 3D-DIC method.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tae-Ik Lee
- Advanced Packaging and Integration Center, Joining R&D Group, KITECH, 156 Gaetbeol-ro, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon 21999, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji Hun Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Dong Jun Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Taek-Soo Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, Republic of Korea
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2
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Xu J, Wang X, Bian Z, Wu X, You J, Wang X. Surface crystalline structure of thin poly(l-lactide) films determined by the long-range substrate effect. POLYMER 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2022.125217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/15/2022]
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3
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Al Mamun. Morphological Variation of the Poly(ε-caprolactone) Crystals in Bulk, Thin and Ultrathin Films of Poly(ε-caprolactone)/Poly(vinyl methyl ether) Blends. POLYMER SCIENCE SERIES A 2022. [DOI: 10.1134/s0965545x22700110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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4
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Ren W, Wang X, Shi J, Xu J, Taneda H, Yamada NL, Kawaguchi D, Tanaka K, Wang X. The role of the molecular weight of the adsorbed layer on a substrate in the suppressed dynamics of supported thin polystyrene films. SOFT MATTER 2022; 18:1997-2005. [PMID: 35195149 DOI: 10.1039/d2sm00067a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The adsorbed layer on a solid surface plays a crucial role in the dynamics of nanoconfinement polymer materials. However, the influence of the adsorbed layer is complex, and clarifying this influence on the dynamics of confined polymers remains a major challenge. In this paper, SiO2-Si substrates with various thicknesses and adsorbed layers of PS with various molecular weights were used to reveal the effect of the adsorbed layer on the corresponding segmental dynamics of the supported thin PS films. Strongly suppressed segmental dynamics of thin PS films were observed for the films supported on thicker adsorbed layers or prepared using higher molecular weight. Neutron reflectivity revealed that the overlap region thickness between the adsorbed layer and the top overlayer increased with increasing thickness and molecular weight of the adsorbed layer, both of which correlate well with the distance over which the polystyrene dynamics were depressed by the adsorbed layer. The results show that the influencing distance of the adsorbed layer is related to the overlap zone formed between the adsorption layer and the upper thin film. The effect of the adsorbed layer molecular weight can be ascribed to the fact that large loops and long tails in the adsorbed layer result in stronger interpenetrations and entanglements between polymer chains in the adsorbed layer and in the overlayer, causing a stronger substrate effect and suppression of the segment dynamics of the supported thin PS films.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weizhao Ren
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Surface & Interface Science of Polymer Materials of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, P. R. China.
| | - Xin Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Surface & Interface Science of Polymer Materials of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, P. R. China.
| | - Jiahui Shi
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Surface & Interface Science of Polymer Materials of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, P. R. China.
| | - Jianquan Xu
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Surface & Interface Science of Polymer Materials of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, P. R. China.
| | - Hidenobu Taneda
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, 819-0395, Japan.
| | - Norifumi L Yamada
- Neutron Science Laboratory, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization, 203-1 Shirakata, Tokai, Naka-gun, Ibaraki 319-1106, Japan
| | - Daisuke Kawaguchi
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, 819-0395, Japan.
- Center for Polymer Interface and Molecular Adhesion Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, 819-0395, Japan
| | - Keiji Tanaka
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, 819-0395, Japan.
- Center for Polymer Interface and Molecular Adhesion Science, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, 819-0395, Japan
| | - Xinping Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Surface & Interface Science of Polymer Materials of Zhejiang Province, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, P. R. China.
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5
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Mamun A. Morphology of the basal lamellar crystal and overgrown lamellae of poly (ε-caprolactone) / poly (vinyl methyl ether) blends isothermally crystallized at high temperatures. JOURNAL OF POLYMER RESEARCH 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s10965-022-02915-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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6
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Influence of the Filler Particles' Surface Morphology on the Polyurethane Matrix's Structure Formation in the Composite. Polymers (Basel) 2021; 13:polym13223864. [PMID: 34833164 PMCID: PMC8624056 DOI: 10.3390/polym13223864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
This article presents the surface morphology effect of silicon carbide (SiC) particles on the polyurethane binder’s structure formation in a dispersed-filled composite. The difference in the morphology and surface relief of filler particles was ensured by the implementation of plasma chemical modification. As a result of this modification, the filler consisted of core-shell particles characterized by a SiC core and a carbon shell (SiC@C), as well as a carbon shell decorated with silicon nanoparticles (SiC@C/SiNP) or nanos (SiC@C/SiNW). The study of the relaxation properties of polyurethane composites has shown that the strongest limiting effect on the molecular mobility of boundary layer’s chain segments is exerted by a highly developed surface with a complex relief of SiC@C/SiNP and SiC@C/SiNW particles. An empirical method was proposed to find the polymer fractions spent on the formation of the boundary, transition and bulk layers of the polymer matrix in the composite. It was shown that the morphology of the filler particles’ surface does not affect the dependence of the boundary layer thickness on the filler’s volume fraction. However, with an increase in the degree of surface development, the boundary layer thickness decreases.
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7
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Ribeiro AH, Haven J, Buckinx AL, Beuchel M, Philipps K, Junkers T, Michels JJ. Direct synthesis of light-emitting triblock copolymers from RAFT polymerization. Polym Chem 2021. [DOI: 10.1039/d0py01358g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
We introduce a straightforward and clean method to synthesize semiconducting triblockcopolymers (tri-BCPs) using RAFT polymerization.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Joris Haven
- Polymer Reaction Design Group
- School of Chemistry
- Monash University
- Clayton
- Australia
| | - Axel-Laurenz Buckinx
- Polymer Reaction Design Group
- School of Chemistry
- Monash University
- Clayton
- Australia
| | | | - Kai Philipps
- Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research
- 55128 Mainz
- Germany
| | - Tanja Junkers
- Polymer Reaction Design Group
- School of Chemistry
- Monash University
- Clayton
- Australia
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8
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Xu J, Lv C, Du B, Wang X, Tsui OKC. Effective Viscosity of Unentangled Random Copolymer Films of Styrene and 4-Methoxystyrene with Different Copolymer Compositions. Macromolecules 2020. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.0c01394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jianquan Xu
- Department of Physics, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon 999077, Hong Kong, China
| | - Chao Lv
- MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science & Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
| | - Binyang Du
- MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science & Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China
| | - Xinping Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Ophelia K. C. Tsui
- Department of Physics, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon 999077, Hong Kong, China
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9
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Hajduk B, Bednarski H, Trzebicka B. Temperature-Dependent Spectroscopic Ellipsometry of Thin Polymer Films. J Phys Chem B 2020; 124:3229-3251. [PMID: 32275433 PMCID: PMC7590969 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.9b11863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2019] [Revised: 02/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Thin polymer films have found many important applications in organic electronics, such as active layers, protective layers, or antistatic layers. Among the various experimental methods suitable for studying the thermo-optical properties of thin polymer films, temperature-dependent spectroscopic ellipsometry plays a special role as a nondestructive and very sensitive optical technique. In this Review Article, issues related to the physical origin of the dependence of ellipsometric angles on temperature are surveyed. In addition, the Review Article discusses the use of temperature-dependent spectroscopic ellipsometry for studying phase transitions in thin polymer films. The benefits of studying thermal transitions using different cooling/heating speeds are also discussed. Furthermore, it is shown how the analysis and modeling of raw ellipsometric data can be used to determine the thermal properties of thin polymer films.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Hajduk
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, M. Curie-Skłodowskiej 34, 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
| | - Henryk Bednarski
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, M. Curie-Skłodowskiej 34, 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
| | - Barbara Trzebicka
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, M. Curie-Skłodowskiej 34, 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
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10
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Jiao X, Wang C, McNeill CR. Detecting the Onset of Molecular Reorganization in Conjugated Polymer Thin Films Using an Easily Accessible Optical Method. Macromolecules 2019. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.9b00606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xuechen Jiao
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia
- Australian Synchrotron, ANSTO, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Chao Wang
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - Christopher R. McNeill
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia
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11
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Zuo B, Zhou H, Davis MJB, Wang X, Priestley RD. Effect of Local Chain Conformation in Adsorbed Nanolayers on Confined Polymer Molecular Mobility. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2019; 122:217801. [PMID: 31283350 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.122.217801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2019] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Interfaces play an important role in modifying the dynamics of polymers confined to the nanoscale. We demonstrate that the distance over which an interface suppresses molecular mobility in poly(styrene) thin films can be systematically increased by tens of nanometers by controlling the chain of conformation, i.e., the height of the loops in irreversibly adsorbed nanolayers. These effects arise from topological interaction between adsorbed and neighboring unadsorbed chains, respectively, which increase their motional coupling to facilitate the propagation of suppressed dynamics originating at the interface, thus highlighting the ability to manipulate interfacial effects by local conformation of chains in adsorbed nanolayers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Biao Zuo
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
| | - Hao Zhou
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Mary J B Davis
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
| | - Xinping Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Rodney D Priestley
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
- Princeton Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
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12
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Qian Z, Cao Z, Galuska L, Zhang S, Xu J, Gu X. Glass Transition Phenomenon for Conjugated Polymers. MACROMOL CHEM PHYS 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/macp.201900062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyuan Qian
- School of Polymer Science and Engineering Center for Optoelectronic Materials and Device The University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg MS 39406 USA
| | - Zhiqiang Cao
- School of Polymer Science and Engineering Center for Optoelectronic Materials and Device The University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg MS 39406 USA
| | - Luke Galuska
- School of Polymer Science and Engineering Center for Optoelectronic Materials and Device The University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg MS 39406 USA
| | - Song Zhang
- School of Polymer Science and Engineering Center for Optoelectronic Materials and Device The University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg MS 39406 USA
| | - Jie Xu
- Argonne National Laboratory Lemont IL 60439 USA
| | - Xiaodan Gu
- School of Polymer Science and Engineering Center for Optoelectronic Materials and Device The University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg MS 39406 USA
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13
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Xu J, Zhang H, Li J, Zhang L, Zuo B, Tsui OKC, Wang X. Conformation-Sensitive Surface Dynamics in Thin Poly(ethylene terephthalate) Film. Macromolecules 2019. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.8b02284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Jianquan Xu
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Haosong Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Jiachen Li
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Li Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Biao Zuo
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Ophelia K. C. Tsui
- Department of Physics, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China
| | - Xinping Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
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14
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Gusain A, Faria RM, Miranda PB. Polymer Solar Cells-Interfacial Processes Related to Performance Issues. Front Chem 2019; 7:61. [PMID: 30809519 PMCID: PMC6379278 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2019.00061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 01/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Harnessing solar energy with solar cells based on organic materials (in particular polymeric solar cells) is an attractive alternative to silicon-based solar cells due to the advantages of lower weight, flexibility, lower manufacturing costs, easier integration with other products, low environmental impact during manufacturing and operations and short energy payback times. However, even with the latest efficiencies reported up to 17%, the reproducibility of these efficiencies is not up to par, with a significant variation in the efficiencies reported across the literature. Since these devices are based on ultrathin multilayer organic films, interfaces play a major role in their operation and performance. This review gives a concise account of the major interfacial issues that are responsible for influencing the device performance, with emphasis on their physical mechanisms. After an introduction to the basic principles of polymeric solar cells, it briefly discusses charge generation and recombination occurring at the donor-acceptor bulk heterojunction interface. It then discusses interfacial morphology for the active layer and how it affects the performance and stability of these devices. Next, the formation of injection and extraction barriers and their role in the device performance is discussed. Finally, it addresses the most common approaches to change these barriers for improving the solar cell efficiency, including the use of interface dipoles. These issues are interrelated to each other and give a clear and concise understanding of the problem of the underperformance due to interfacial phenomena occurring within the device. This review not only discusses some of the implemented approaches that have been adopted in order to address these problems, but also highlights interfacial issues that are yet to be fully understood in organic solar cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhay Gusain
- Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo, São Carlos, Brazil
| | - Roberto M Faria
- Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo, São Carlos, Brazil
| | - Paulo B Miranda
- Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo, São Carlos, Brazil
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15
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Xu J, Li Y, Wu X, Zuo B, Wang X, Zhang W, Tsui OKC. Thickness of the Surface Mobile Layer with Accelerated Crystallization Kinetics in Poly(ethylene terephthalate) Films: Direct Measurement and Analysis. Macromolecules 2018. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.8b00396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Jianquan Xu
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Yun Li
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Xiaoling Wu
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Biao Zuo
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Xinping Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Ophelia K. C. Tsui
- Department of Physics, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China
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16
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Hajduk B, Bednarski H, Jarząbek B, Janeczek H, Nitschke P. P3HT:PCBM blend films phase diagram on the base of variable-temperature spectroscopic ellipsometry. BEILSTEIN JOURNAL OF NANOTECHNOLOGY 2018; 9:1108-1115. [PMID: 29719761 PMCID: PMC5905273 DOI: 10.3762/bjnano.9.102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2017] [Accepted: 03/16/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
In this work we present an in-depth study of the how the composition of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT):[6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) blend films influences their phase transitions using variable-temperature spectroscopic ellipsometry. We demonstrate that this non-destructive method is a very sensitive optical technique to investigate the phase transitions and to determine the glass transition temperatures and melting crystallization points of the P3HT:PCBM blend films. By analyzing the influence of the temperature T on the raw ellipsometric data, we have identified a high sensitivity of the ellipsometric angle Δ at a wavelength of 280 nm to temperature changes. Characteristic temperatures determined from the slope changes of the Δ(T) plot appeared to be very good guess values for the phase transition temperatures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Hajduk
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 Marie Curie-Skłodowska str., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
| | - Henryk Bednarski
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 Marie Curie-Skłodowska str., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
| | - Bożena Jarząbek
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 Marie Curie-Skłodowska str., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
| | - Henryk Janeczek
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 Marie Curie-Skłodowska str., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
| | - Paweł Nitschke
- Centre of Polymer and Carbon Materials, Polish Academy of Sciences, 34 Marie Curie-Skłodowska str., 41-819 Zabrze, Poland
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17
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Snyder CR, DeLongchamp DM. Glassy phases in organic semiconductors. CURRENT OPINION IN SOLID STATE & MATERIALS SCIENCE 2018; 22:10.1016/j.cossms.2018.03.001. [PMID: 35529422 PMCID: PMC9074799 DOI: 10.1016/j.cossms.2018.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Organic semiconductors may be processed from fluids using graphical arts printing and patterning techniques to create complex circuitry. Because organic semiconductors are weak van der Waals solids, the creation of glassy phases during processing is quite common. Because structural disorder leads to electronic disorder, it is necessary to understand these phases to optimize and control the electronic properties of these materials. Here we review the significance of glassy phases in organic semiconductors. We examine challenges in the measurement of the glass transition temperature and the accurate classification of phases in these relatively rigid materials. Device implications of glassy phases are discussed. Processing schemes that are grounded in the principles of glass physics and sound glass transition temperature measurement will more quickly achieve desired structure and electronic characteristics, accelerating the exciting progress of organic semiconductor technology development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chad R Snyder
- Materials Science and Engineering Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, USA
| | - Dean M DeLongchamp
- Materials Science and Engineering Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Gaithersburg, MD 20899, USA
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18
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Xu J, Liu Z, Lan Y, Zuo B, Wang X, Yang J, Zhang W, Hu W. Mobility Gradient of Poly(ethylene terephthalate) Chains near a Substrate Scaled by the Thickness of the Adsorbed Layer. Macromolecules 2017. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.macromol.7b00922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Jianquan Xu
- Department
of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing
Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Zhenshan Liu
- Department
of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing
Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Yang Lan
- Department
of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing
Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Biao Zuo
- Department
of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing
Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Xinping Wang
- Department
of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing
Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Juping Yang
- Department
of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing
Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Wei Zhang
- Department
of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing
Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Wenbing Hu
- Department
of Polymer Science and Engineering, State Key Lab of Coordination
Chemistry, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
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19
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Wei W, Feng S, Zhou Q, Liang H, Long Y, Wu Q, Gao H, Liang G, Zhu F. Study on glass transition and physical aging of polystyrene nanowires by differential scanning calorimetry. JOURNAL OF POLYMER RESEARCH 2017. [DOI: 10.1007/s10965-017-1199-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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20
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Nugroho FAA, Diaz de Zerio Mendaza A, Lindqvist C, Antosiewicz TJ, Müller C, Langhammer C. Plasmonic Nanospectroscopy for Thermal Analysis of Organic Semiconductor Thin Films. Anal Chem 2017; 89:2575-2582. [PMID: 28194946 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.6b04807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Organic semiconductors are key materials for the next generation thin film electronic devices like field-effect transistors, light-emitting diodes, and solar cells. Accurate thermal analysis is essential for the fundamental understanding of these materials, for device design, stability studies, and quality control because the desired nanostructures are often far from thermodynamic equilibrium and therefore tend to evolve with time and temperature. However, classical experimental techniques are insufficient because the active layer of most organoelectronic device architectures is typically only on the order of a hundred nanometers or less. Scrutinizing the thermal properties in this size range is, however, critical because strong deviations of the thermal properties from bulk values due to confinement effects and pronounced influence of the substrate become significant. Here, we introduce plasmonic nanospectroscopy as an experimental approach to scrutinize the thickness dependence of the thermal stability of semicrystalline, liquid-crystalline, and glassy organic semiconductor thin films down to the sub-100 nm film thickness regime. In summary, we find a pronounced thickness dependence of the glass transition temperature of ternary polymer/fullerene blend thin films and their constituents, which can be resolved with exceptional precision by the plasmonic nanospectroscopy method, which relies on remarkably simple instrumentation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Tomasz J Antosiewicz
- Centre of New Technologies, University of Warsaw , Banacha 2c, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland
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21
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Liu D, Qin H, Zhang J, Wang T. Thickness-dependent glass transition temperature and charge mobility in cross-linked polyfluorene thin films. Phys Rev E 2016; 94:052503. [PMID: 27967096 DOI: 10.1103/physreve.94.052503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
We report thickness-dependent glass transition temperature (T_{g}) and charge mobility in cross-linked thin films made of conjugated polymer poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-co-N-(4-butylphenyl)diphenylamine) (TFB). Monotonic T_{g} depressions with reducing film thickness in thermally and UV cross-linked TFB thin films supported on Si-SiOx substrates are observed through ellipsometry measurements, suggesting that a surface mobile layer with enhanced chain dynamics still exists in cross-linked TFB thin films, even with a high cross-linking percentage. Data fitting using a three-layer model shows that the T_{g} in the interface, bulk and surface layer both increases with increasing cross-linking, while the thickness of the interface and surface layer increases and reduces, respectively. Cross-linking of TFB thin film generates traps that hinder charge transport and consequently reduce charge mobility. The charge mobility converges in thick (>140 nm) and thin (<40 nm) TFB films but shows strong thickness dependence in between, reducing from 4.0×10^{-4}cm^{2}/Vs in a 180-nm film to 0.1×10^{-4}cm^{2}/Vs in a 20-nm thin film.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan Liu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Hui Qin
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Jinghui Zhang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, China
| | - Tao Wang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan 430070, China
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22
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Shinotsuka K, Assender H. In situAFM study of near-surface crystallization in PET and PEN. J Appl Polym Sci 2016. [DOI: 10.1002/app.44269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kei Shinotsuka
- Department of Materials; University of Oxford; Parks Road Oxford OX1 3PH United Kingdom
| | - Hazel Assender
- Department of Materials; University of Oxford; Parks Road Oxford OX1 3PH United Kingdom
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23
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Zuo B, Xu J, Sun S, Liu Y, Yang J, Zhang L, Wang X. Stepwise crystallization and the layered distribution in crystallization kinetics of ultra-thin poly(ethylene terephthalate) film. J Chem Phys 2016; 144:234902. [DOI: 10.1063/1.4953852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Biao Zuo
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Jianquan Xu
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Shuzheng Sun
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Yue Liu
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Juping Yang
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Li Zhang
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
| | - Xinping Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Advanced Textile Materials and Manufacturing Technology of the Education Ministry, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China
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24
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Ohisa S, Pu YJ, Yamada NL, Matsuba G, Kido J. Molecular Interdiffusion between Stacked Layers by Solution and Thermal Annealing Processes in Organic Light Emitting Devices. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2015; 7:20779-20785. [PMID: 26331696 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.5b05818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
In organic light emitting devices (OLEDs), interfacial structures between multilayers have large impacts on the characteristics of OLEDs. Herein, we succeeded in revealing the interdiffusion in solution processed and thermal annealed OLEDs by neutron reflectometry. We investigated interfaces between a polymer under layer and small molecules upper layer. The small molecules diffused into the swollen polymer layer during the interfacial formation by the solution process, but the polymer did not diffuse into the small molecules layer. At temperatures close to the glass transition temperatures of the materials, asymmetric molecular diffusion was observed. We elucidated the effects of the interdiffusion on the characteristics of OLEDs. Partially mixing the interface improved the current efficiencies due to suppressed triplet-polaron quenching at the interface. Controlling and understanding the interfacial structures of the miultilayers will be more important to improve the OLED characteristics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satoru Ohisa
- Department of Organic Device Engineering, Yamagata University , 4-3-16 Johnan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan
| | - Yong-Jin Pu
- Department of Organic Device Engineering, Yamagata University , 4-3-16 Johnan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan
| | - Norifumi L Yamada
- Institute of Material Structure Science, High-Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK) , 203-1 Shirakata, Tokai, Naka 319-1106, Japan
| | - Go Matsuba
- Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Yamagata University , 4-3-16 Jonan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan
| | - Junji Kido
- Department of Organic Device Engineering, Yamagata University , 4-3-16 Johnan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan
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25
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Spièce J, Martínez-Tong DE, Sferrazza M, Nogales A, Napolitano S. Are polymers glassier upon confinement? SOFT MATTER 2015; 11:6179-6186. [PMID: 26086889 DOI: 10.1039/c5sm01229e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Glass forming systems are characterized by a stability against crystallization upon heating and by the easiness with which their liquid phase can be transformed into a solid lacking of long-range order upon cooling (glass forming ability). Here, we report the thickness dependence of the thermal phase transition temperatures of poly(l-lactide acid) thin films supported onto solid substrates. The determination of the glass transition, cold crystallization and melting temperatures down to a thickness of 6 nm, permitted us to build up parameters describing glass stability and glass forming ability. We observed a strong influence of the film thickness on the latter, while the former is not affected by 1D confinement. Further experiments permitted us to highlight key structural morphology features giving insights to our ellipsometric results via a physical picture based on the changes in the free volume content in proximity of the supporting interfaces.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean Spièce
- Laboratory of Polymer and Soft Matter Dynamics, Faculté des Sciences, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Boulevard du Triomphe, 1050 Bruxelles, Belgium.
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26
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Môn D, Higgins AM, James D, Hampton M, Macdonald JE, Ward MB, Gutfreund P, Lilliu S, Rawle J. Bimodal crystallization at polymer–fullerene interfaces. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2015; 17:2216-27. [DOI: 10.1039/c4cp04253k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The growth-kinetics of PCBM crystals, on two different length-scales, is controlled by the thickness of the polymer layer within a PCBM–polymer bilayer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dyfrig Môn
- College of Engineering
- Swansea University
- Swansea
- UK
| | | | - David James
- College of Engineering
- Swansea University
- Swansea
- UK
| | - Mark Hampton
- School of Physics and Astronomy
- Cardiff University
- Cardiff CF24 3AA
- UK
| | | | - Michael B. Ward
- Institute for Materials Research
- School of Process
- Environmental and Materials Engineering
- University of Leeds
- Leeds
| | | | - Samuele Lilliu
- Nano-Optics and Optoelectronics Research Laboratory
- Masdar Institute of Science and Technology
- Abu Dhabi
- United Arab Emirates
| | - Jonathan Rawle
- Diamond Light Source
- Harwell Science and Innovation Campus
- Oxfordshire OX11 0DE
- UK
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27
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Müller C, Andersson LM, Peña-Rodríguez O, Garriga M, Inganäs O, Campoy-Quiles M. Determination of Thermal Transition Depth Profiles in Polymer Semiconductor Films with Ellipsometry. Macromolecules 2013. [DOI: 10.1021/ma400871u] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Christian Müller
- Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Esfera UAB,
Bellaterra 08193, Spain
- Biomolecular and Organic Electronics, Department of Physics, Chemistry & Biology, Linköping University, 58183 Linköping, Sweden
- Department of Chemical and Biological
Engineering/Polymer Technology, Chalmers University of Technology, 41296 Göteborg, Sweden
| | - L. Mattias Andersson
- Biomolecular and Organic Electronics, Department of Physics, Chemistry & Biology, Linköping University, 58183 Linköping, Sweden
| | - Ovidio Peña-Rodríguez
- Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Esfera UAB,
Bellaterra 08193, Spain
| | - Miquel Garriga
- Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Esfera UAB,
Bellaterra 08193, Spain
| | - Olle Inganäs
- Biomolecular and Organic Electronics, Department of Physics, Chemistry & Biology, Linköping University, 58183 Linköping, Sweden
| | - Mariano Campoy-Quiles
- Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Esfera UAB,
Bellaterra 08193, Spain
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28
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McDowell JJ, Schick I, Price A, Faulkner D, Ozin G. Pure Blue Emitting Poly(3,6-dimethoxy-9,9-dialkylsilafluorenes) Prepared via Nickel-Catalyzed Cross-Coupling of Diarylmagnesate Monomers. Macromolecules 2013. [DOI: 10.1021/ma401346y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey J. McDowell
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80
St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H6, Canada
| | - Isabel Schick
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80
St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H6, Canada
| | - Alastair Price
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80
St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H6, Canada
| | - Daniel Faulkner
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80
St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H6, Canada
| | - Geoffrey Ozin
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80
St. George Street, Toronto, ON M5S 3H6, Canada
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29
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Liu D, Osuna Orozco R, Wang T. Deviations of the glass transition temperature in amorphous conjugated polymer thin films. PHYSICAL REVIEW. E, STATISTICAL, NONLINEAR, AND SOFT MATTER PHYSICS 2013; 88:022601. [PMID: 24032856 DOI: 10.1103/physreve.88.022601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2013] [Revised: 06/25/2013] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
The deviations of the glass transition temperature (T(g)) in thin films of an amorphous conjugated polymer poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-co-N-(4-butylphenyl)diphenylamine) (TFB) are reported. Monotonic and nonmonotonic T(g) deviations are observed in TFB thin films supported on Si-SiOx and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), respectively. A three-layer model is developed to fit both monotonic and nonmonotonic T(g) deviations in these films. A 5-nm PEDOT:PSS capping layer was not found to be effective to remove the free-surface effect in Si-SiOx supported TFB films.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan Liu
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, United Kingdom
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30
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Wang T, Pearson AJ, Dunbar ADF, Staniec PA, Watters DC, Coles D, Yi H, Iraqi A, Lidzey DG, Jones RAL. Competition between substrate-mediated π-π stacking and surface-mediated T(g) depression in ultrathin conjugated polymer films. THE EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL. E, SOFT MATTER 2012; 35:9807. [PMID: 23239269 DOI: 10.1140/epje/i2012-12129-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2012] [Revised: 10/05/2012] [Accepted: 11/22/2012] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
We report surface and interface effects in dynamics and chain conformation in the thin film of conjugated polymer PCDTBT. To probe dynamic anomalies, we measure the glass transition temperature (T(g)) of PCDTBT films as a function of thickness, and find that there is a significant depression in T(g) for films less than 100 nm thick; a result qualitatively similar to that observed in many other polymer film systems. However, for films less than 40 nm, the T(g) converges to a constant value of 20 K below its bulk value. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction shows depth-dependent molecular organization that is associated with the unusual thickness-dependent dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Wang
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, UK.
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31
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Kocherlakota LS, Knorr DB, Foster L, Overney RM. Enhanced gas transport properties and molecular mobilities in nano-constrained poly[1-(trimethylsilyl)-1-propyne] membranes. POLYMER 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2012.03.067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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32
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Flier BMI, Baier MC, Huber J, Müllen K, Mecking S, Zumbusch A, Wöll D. Heterogeneous diffusion in thin polymer films as observed by high-temperature single-molecule fluorescence microscopy. J Am Chem Soc 2011; 134:480-8. [PMID: 22088172 DOI: 10.1021/ja208581r] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Single-molecule fluorescence microscopy was used to investigate the dynamics of perylene diimide (PDI) molecules in thin supported polystyrene (PS) films at temperatures up to 135 °C. Such high temperatures, so far unreached in single-molecule spectroscopy studies, were achieved using a custom-built setup which allows for restricting the heated mass to a minimum. This enables temperature-dependent single-molecule fluorescence studies of structural dynamics in the temperature range most relevant to the processing and to applications of thermoplastic materials. In order to ensure that polymer chains were relaxed, a molecular weight of 3000 g/mol, clearly below the entanglement length of PS, was chosen. We found significant heterogeneities in the motion of single PDI probe molecules near T(g). An analysis of the track radius of the recorded single-probe molecule tracks allowed for a distinction between mobile and immobile molecules. Up to the glass transition temperature in bulk, T(g,bulk), probe molecules were immobile; at temperatures higher than T(g,bulk) + 40 K, all probe molecules were mobile. In the range between 0 and 40 K above T(g,bulk) the fraction of mobile probe molecules strongly depends on film thickness. In 30-nm thin films mobility is observed at lower temperatures than in thick films. The fractions of mobile probe molecules were compared and rationalized using Monte Carlo random walk simulations. Results of these simulations indicate that the observed heterogeneities can be explained by a model which assumes a T(g) profile and an increased probability of probe molecules remaining at the surface, both effects caused by a density profile with decreasing polymer density at the polymer-air interface.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bente M I Flier
- Fachbereich Chemie, Universität Konstanz, Universitätsstrasse 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
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33
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Müller C, Bergqvist J, Vandewal K, Tvingstedt K, Anselmo AS, Magnusson R, Alonso MI, Moons E, Arwin H, Campoy-Quiles M, Inganäs O. Phase behaviour of liquid-crystalline polymer/fullerene organic photovoltaic blends: thermal stability and miscibility. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2011. [DOI: 10.1039/c1jm11239b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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34
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Mok MM, Kim J, Marrou SR, Torkelson JM. Ellipsometry measurements of glass transition breadth in bulk films of random, block, and gradient copolymers. THE EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL. E, SOFT MATTER 2010; 31:239-252. [PMID: 20217174 DOI: 10.1140/epje/i2010-10569-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2009] [Revised: 11/01/2009] [Accepted: 01/20/2010] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Bulk films of random, block and gradient copolymer systems were studied using ellipsometry to demonstrate the applicability of the numerical differentiation technique pioneered by Kawana and Jones for studying the glass transition temperature (T (g)) behavior and thermal expansivities of copolymers possessing different architectures and different levels of nanoheterogeneity. In a series of styrene/n -butyl methacrylate (S/nBMA) random copolymers, T (g) breadths were observed to increase from approximately 17( degrees ) C in styrene-rich cases to almost 30( degrees ) C in nBMA-rich cases, reflecting previous observations of significant nanoheterogeneity in PnBMA homopolymers. The derivative technique also revealed for the first time a substantial increase in glassy-state expansivity with increasing nBMA content in S/nBMA random copolymers, from 1.4x10(-4) K-1 in PS to 3.5x10(-4) K-1 in PnBMA. The first characterization of block copolymer T (g) 's and T (g) breadths by ellipsometry is given, examining the impact of nanophase-segregated copolymer structure on ellipsometric measurements of glass transition. The results show that, while the technique is effective in detecting the two T (g) 's expected in certain block copolymer systems, the details of the glass transition can become suppressed in ellipsometry measurements of a rubbery minor phase under conditions where the matrix is glassy; meanwhile, both transitions are easily discernible by differential scanning calorimetry. Finally, broad glass transition regions were measured in gradient copolymers, yielding in some cases extraordinary T (g) breadths of 69- 71( degrees ) C , factors of 4-5 larger than the T (g) breadths of related homopolymers and random copolymers. Surprisingly, one gradient copolymer demonstrated a slightly narrower T (g) breadth than the S/nBMA random copolymers with the highest nBMA content. This highlights the fact that nanoheterogeneity relevant to the glass transition response in selected statistical copolymers can be comparable to or exceed that observed in moderately phase-segregated gradient copolymers.
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Affiliation(s)
- M M Mok
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
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35
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Variations in the glass transition temperature of polyester with special architectures confined in thin films. POLYMER 2010. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymer.2009.11.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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36
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Mikhnenko OV, Cordella F, Sieval AB, Hummelen JC, Blom PWM, Loi MA. Exciton Quenching Close to Polymer−Vacuum Interface of Spin-Coated Films of Poly(p-phenylenevinylene) Derivative. J Phys Chem B 2009; 113:9104-9. [DOI: 10.1021/jp9012637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Oleksandr V Mikhnenko
- Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands.
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37
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Chen JH, Chang CS, Chang YX, Chen CY, Chen HL, Chen SA. Gelation and Its Effect on the Photophysical Behavior of Poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-2,7-diyl) in Toluene. Macromolecules 2009. [DOI: 10.1021/ma802408u] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Hong Chen
- Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsin-Chu 30013, Taiwan
| | - Chih-Shun Chang
- Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsin-Chu 30013, Taiwan
| | - Ying-Xun Chang
- Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsin-Chu 30013, Taiwan
| | - Chun-Yu Chen
- Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsin-Chu 30013, Taiwan
| | - Hsin-Lung Chen
- Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsin-Chu 30013, Taiwan
| | - Show-An Chen
- Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsin-Chu 30013, Taiwan
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38
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Lee K, Oh SH, Kang NG, Lee JS, Kim DY, Lee H, Jung GY. Nonaqueous nanoscale metal transfer by controlling the stickiness of organic film. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2008; 24:8413-8416. [PMID: 18642861 DOI: 10.1021/la801019d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Nanoscale metal patterns were successfully reproduced on top of a functional organic layer by a direct metal-transfer technique (DMT). A gold film deposited on the protruding features of a stamp was transferred to the organic layer by controlling its stickiness through a two-step thermal treatment. The process was also suitable for the transfer of highly adhesive metal materials to the stamp surface by using an additional gold layer. Chromium nanowires at 70 nm half-pitch were faithfully produced without any damage to the organic active layer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyeongmi Lee
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, 261 Cheomdan-Gwagiro, Buk-gu, Gwangju, South Korea
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39
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40
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Efremov MY, Soofi SS, Kiyanova AV, Munoz CJ, Burgardt P, Cerrina F, Nealey PF. Vacuum ellipsometry as a method for probing glass transition in thin polymer films. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2008; 79:043903. [PMID: 18447531 DOI: 10.1063/1.2901601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
A vacuum ellipsometer has been designed for probing the glass transition in thin supported polymer films. The device is based on the optics of a commercial spectroscopic phase-modulated ellipsometer. A custom-made vacuum chamber evacuated by oil-free pumps, variable temperature optical table, and computer-based data acquisition system was described. The performance of the tool has been demonstrated using 20-200 nm thick poly(methyl methacrylate) and polystyrene films coated on silicon substrates at 10(-6)-10(-8) torr residual gas pressure. Both polymers show pronounced glass transitions. The difficulties in assigning in the glass transition temperature are discussed with respect to the experimental challenges of the measurements in thin polymer films. It is found that the experimental curves can be significantly affected by a residual gas. This effect manifests itself at lower temperatures as a decreased or even negative apparent thermal coefficient of expansion, and is related to the uptake and desorption of water by the samples during temperature scans. It is also found that an ionization gauge--the standard accessory of any high vacuum system--can cause a number of spurious phenomena including drift in the experimental data, roughening of the polymer surface, and film dewetting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mikhail Yu Efremov
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Center for Nanotechnology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA.
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41
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Campoy-Quiles M, Ferenczi T, Agostinelli T, Etchegoin PG, Kim Y, Anthopoulos TD, Stavrinou PN, Bradley DDC, Nelson J. Morphology evolution via self-organization and lateral and vertical diffusion in polymer:fullerene solar cell blends. NATURE MATERIALS 2008; 7:158-64. [PMID: 18204451 DOI: 10.1038/nmat2102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 377] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2007] [Accepted: 12/13/2007] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Control of blend morphology at the microscopic scale is critical for optimizing the power conversion efficiency of plastic solar cells based on blends of conjugated polymer with fullerene derivatives. In the case of bulk heterojunctions of regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and a soluble fullerene derivative ([6,6]-phenyl C61-butyric acid methyl ester, PCBM), both blend morphology and photovoltaic device performance are influenced by various treatments, including choice of solvent, rate of drying, thermal annealing and vapour annealing. Although the protocols differ significantly, the maximum power conversion efficiency values reported for the various techniques are comparable (4-5%). In this paper, we demonstrate that these techniques all lead to a common arrangement of the components, which consists of a vertically and laterally phase-separated blend of crystalline P3HT and PCBM. We propose a morphology evolution that consists of an initial crystallization of P3HT chains, followed by diffusion of PCBM molecules to nucleation sites, at which aggregates of PCBM then grow.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariano Campoy-Quiles
- Department of Physics, Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, Prince Consort Road, London SW7 2BW, UK.
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42
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Rahman MH, Chen CY, Liao SC, Chen HL, Tsao CS, Chen JH, Liao JL, Ivanov VA, Chen SA. Segmental Alignment in the Aggregate Domains of Poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene) in Semidilute Solution. Macromolecules 2007. [DOI: 10.1021/ma071036f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- M. Habibur Rahman
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Chun-Yu Chen
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Shao-Ching Liao
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Hsin-Lung Chen
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Cheng-Si Tsao
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Jean-Hong Chen
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Jing-Long Liao
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Viktor A. Ivanov
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
| | - Show-An Chen
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Institute of Energy Research, Lungtun, Taoynan, Taiwan, Department of Polymer Materials, Kun Shan University, Yungkang City, Tainan Hsien 71003, Taiwan, and Physics Department, Moscow State University, Moscow 117234, Russia
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Napolitano S, Wübbenhorst M. Effect of a Reduced Mobility Layer on the Interplay between Molecular Relaxations and Diffusion-Limited Crystallization Rate in Ultrathin Polymer Films. J Phys Chem B 2007; 111:5775-80. [PMID: 17480069 DOI: 10.1021/jp068721t] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In ultrathin polymer films, the coupling between the segmental mobility, precursor of the molecular diffusion, and the crystallization rate is broken down because of interfacial interactions. In particular, in the presence of a reduced mobility layer at the interface with the substrate, the crystallization kinetics slow down at a length scale bigger than the one connected with the deviation from bulk behavior of the structural relaxation. By modeling the influence of the substrate interactions on the parameters governing the temperature evolution of the main relaxation time, it was possible to reproduce the effect of geometrical confinement on the quantities connected to the diffusion-limited crystallization rate. Upon reduction of the thickness or increasing of the substrate interaction, the films show an apparent higher glass stability in terms of an increase of the cold crystallization temperature and of the crystallization time. The deviations from bulk behavior were found to vanish above a crossover temperature as already observed for the phenomena connected to the glass transition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Napolitano
- Laboratory of Acoustics and Thermal Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, Leuven, Belgium.
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Roth CB, Torkelson JM. Selectively Probing the Glass Transition Temperature in Multilayer Polymer Films: Equivalence of Block Copolymers and Multilayer Films of Different Homopolymers. Macromolecules 2007. [DOI: 10.1021/ma070162g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Connie B. Roth
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208-3120
| | - John M. Torkelson
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering and Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208-3120
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45
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Roth CB, McNerny KL, Jager WF, Torkelson JM. Eliminating the Enhanced Mobility at the Free Surface of Polystyrene: Fluorescence Studies of the Glass Transition Temperature in Thin Bilayer Films of Immiscible Polymers. Macromolecules 2007. [DOI: 10.1021/ma062864w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 189] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Mundra MK, Donthu SK, Dravid VP, Torkelson JM. Effect of spatial confinement on the glass-transition temperature of patterned polymer nanostructures. NANO LETTERS 2007; 7:713-8. [PMID: 17288488 DOI: 10.1021/nl062894c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) nanostructures embedded with a fluorescence tag are fabricated using electron beam lithography on oxidized silicon substrates. The glass transition temperatures (Tgs) of these one-dimensional (1-D) nanostructures (parallel lines) are measured by monitoring their temperature-dependent fluorescence intensities, revealing substantial differences between the Tgs of the nanostructures and the thin films from which they were fabricated. For example, the Tg of 50-nm-wide PMMA nanolines on silica is approximately 15 K lower than that of a PMMA film on silica of the same 18 nm thickness. Attractive PMMA-silica interfacial interactions increase the Tg, while free surfaces decrease the Tg of PMMA in ultrathin films relative to bulk PMMA. Thus, the significant differences between the Tgs of the 1-D and two-dimensional (2-D) forms of PMMA on silica are the result of a substantial increase in the ratio of free-surface area to interfacial area in the PMMA nanolines relative to ultrathin films.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manish K Mundra
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA
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