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Comparative study of the nanomorphology of spray and spin coated PTB7 polymer: Fullerene films
Author(s) -
AlHussein Mahmoud,
Herzig Eva M.,
Schindler Markus,
Löhrer Franziska,
Palumbiny Claudia M.,
Wang Weijia,
Roth Stephan V.,
MüllerBuschbaum Peter
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
polymer engineering and science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.503
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1548-2634
pISSN - 0032-3888
DOI - 10.1002/pen.24317
Subject(s) - materials science , fullerene , polymer , lamellar structure , chemical engineering , polymer blend , thiophene , composite material , polymer chemistry , nanotechnology , organic chemistry , copolymer , chemistry , engineering
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‐C 71 ‐butyric acid methyl ester (PC 71 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:PC 71 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