materials-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Conjugated Polymers 2012

A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2012) | Viewed by 21108

Special Issue Editor

Northwestern University, Department of Chemistry, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208-3113, USA
Interests: plastic electronics; organic photovoltacis; metal oxide/transparent electronics; electro-optic materials and devices; organic materials for multiphotonics; contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Conventional polymers (or plastics) have been traditionally considered passive materials and the electronic industry has been extensively using them as insulators of metallic conductors, photoresists, and incapsulation layers. However, those having a p-conjugated (hetero)aromatic backbone are capable of transporting charge and interact efficiently with light. Thus, since the discovery that chemical doping of polyacetylene resulted in a highly conducting material several academic and industrial research laboratories have initiated projects in this exciting area. Although the initial research and development emphasis was to enable highly conducting materials as a replacement of conventional metals, more recent efforts targeted their semiconducting properties. Furthermore the focus has shifted from synthesizing insoluble and untreatable powders such as polyacetylene and unsubtituted poly(heterocycles) such as polythiophene to enhancing the performance of semiconducting polymers exhibiting far greater solubility and manufacturability. The net result is that during the last 30 years an extensive library of polymers has been created by designing and synthesizing new polymerizable monomeric structures exhibiting physical and chemical properties tuned for implementation in a variety of opto-electronic devices. These modifications ultimately affect the charge transport characteristics of the bulk solid and define the role that the material may play in various device configurations. Example of applications include, but not limited to, conducting elements (after proper doping), organic photoconductors, field-effect transistors (FET), light-emitting diodes (LED), photovoltaic cells (PV), sensors, lasers, photodetectors, and organic circuits. The goal of this special issue is to cover prior or new synthetic aspects for the preparation of p-conjugated polymers, description of tools for understanding their optical, electrical, and structural properties as well as their implementation into different opto-electronic devices.

Prof. Dr. Antonio Facchetti
Guest Editor

Keywords

  • conducting polymers
  • synthesis
  • (poly)heterocycle
  • (poly)thiophene
  • semiconductors
  • conductors
  • transistors
  • diodes
  • photovoltaic
  • sensors

Published Papers (3 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

1251 KiB  
Article
Effect of Solvents, Their Mixture and Thermal Annealing on the Performance of Solution Processed Polymer Light-Emitting Diodes
by Mohammad Hashem Rezvani, Farid Farajollahi, Alireza Nikfarjam, Parisa Bakhtiarpour and Erfan Saydanzad
Materials 2013, 6(5), 1994-2006; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma6051994 - 15 May 2013
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 6416
Abstract
In this study, we first investigated changes seen in electrical and optical properties of a polymer light-emitting diode due to using different kinds of solvents and their mixture. Two-layer light emitting diodes with organic small molecules doped in a PVK polymer host were [...] Read more.
In this study, we first investigated changes seen in electrical and optical properties of a polymer light-emitting diode due to using different kinds of solvents and their mixture. Two-layer light emitting diodes with organic small molecules doped in a PVK polymer host were fabricated using (i) non-aromatic solvent chloroform with a high evaporation rate; (ii) aromatic solvent chlorobenzene with a low evaporation rate, and (iii) their mixture with different relative ratios. The effect of nano-scale layer thickness, surface roughness and internal nano-morphology on threshold voltage and the amount of electric current, the luminance and efficiency of a device were assessed. Results indicated the importance of majority charge carriers’ type in the selection of solvent and tuning its properties. Then, the effect of thermal annealing on electrical and optical properties of polymer light emitting diodes was investigated. During the device fabrication, pre-annealing in 80 and/or 120 °C and post-annealing in 120 °C were performed. The nano-scale effect of annealing on polymer-metal interface and electric current injection was described thoroughly. A comparison between threshold voltage, luminance and electric current efficiency of luminescence for different annealing processes was undertaken, so that the best electric current efficiency of luminescence achieved at 120 °C pre-annealing accompanied with 120 °C post-annealing. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conjugated Polymers 2012)
Show Figures

Graphical abstract

448 KiB  
Article
Electronic Two-Transition-Induced Enhancement of Emission Efficiency in Polymer Light-Emitting Diodes
by Ren-Ai Chen, Cong Wang, Sheng Li and Thomas F. George
Materials 2013, 6(3), 886-896; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma6030886 - 06 Mar 2013
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 4999
Abstract
With the development of experimental techniques, effective injection and transportation of electrons is proven as a way to obtain polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs) with high quantum efficiency. This paper reveals a valid mechanism for the enhancement of quantum efficiency in PLEDs. When an [...] Read more.
With the development of experimental techniques, effective injection and transportation of electrons is proven as a way to obtain polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs) with high quantum efficiency. This paper reveals a valid mechanism for the enhancement of quantum efficiency in PLEDs. When an external electric field is applied, the interaction between a negative polaron and triplet exciton leads to an electronic two-transition process, which induces the exciton to emit light and thus improve the emission efficiency of PLEDs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conjugated Polymers 2012)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

6207 KiB  
Review
Polymeric Thin Films for Organic Electronics: Properties and Adaptive Structures
by Sebastiano Cataldo and Bruno Pignataro
Materials 2013, 6(3), 1159-1190; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma6031159 - 22 Mar 2013
Cited by 33 | Viewed by 9300
Abstract
This review deals with the correlation between morphology, structure and performance of organic electronic devices including thin film transistors and solar cells. In particular, we report on solution processed devices going into the role of the 3D supramolecular organization in determining their electronic [...] Read more.
This review deals with the correlation between morphology, structure and performance of organic electronic devices including thin film transistors and solar cells. In particular, we report on solution processed devices going into the role of the 3D supramolecular organization in determining their electronic properties. A selection of case studies from recent literature are reviewed, relying on solution methods for organic thin-film deposition which allow fine control of the supramolecular aggregation of polymers confined at surfaces in nanoscopic layers. A special focus is given to issues exploiting morphological structures stemming from the intrinsic polymeric dynamic adaptation under non-equilibrium conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Conjugated Polymers 2012)
Show Figures

Graphical abstract

Back to TopTop