Comparative study of the nanomorphology of spray and spin coated PTB7 polymer: Fullerene films. Issue 8 (28th April 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Al‐Hussein, Mahmoud; Herzig, Eva M.; Schindler, Markus; Löhrer, Franziska; Palumbiny, Claudia M.; Wang, Weijia; Roth, Stephan V.; Müller‐Buschbaum, Peter
• Is Part Of: Polymer engineering & science. Volume 56:Issue 8(2016:Aug.)
• Page Start: 889
• Page End: 894
• Publication Date: 2016-04-28
• Subjects: Polymer engineering -- Periodicals; Polymers -- Periodicals; 668.9
• DOI: 10.1002/pen.24317
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0032-3888

Abstract

Abstract : We present a comparative study of the nanomorphology of spray and spin coated films of a blend of thieno[3, 4‐ b ]‐thiophene/benzodithiophene (PTB7) semiconducting polymer and [6, 6]‐phenyl‐C71 ‐butyric acid methyl ester (PC71 BM). The surface morphology and inner structure of these films are investigated with optical microscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and grazing incidence wide‐angle X‐ray scattering (GIWAXS). The spray coated PTB7:PC71 BM films exhibit significant differences in the molecular packing compared with their spin‐coated counterparts. Only very weak order is observed in the spray‐coated films as compared to well‐defined ordered periodic lamellar structure and π–π stacking of the PTB7 polymer of the spin‐coated systems. This difference in the resulting nanomorphology is related to the different structural formation mechanisms in the two deposition techniques. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 56:889–894, 2016. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers